Shaded Past
by gaia-of-earth
Summary: Darien Lupin, son of Hermione and Remus Lupin, is different from the other students. He sees things that no one else does. He hears things in the walls. And it has to deal with Hogwarts'dark past. contains mostly swearing,creepy scenes and slight violence
1. Prologue

A/N: Hello, everyone! The story goes on, this time it's about Remus and Hermione's son, Darien Fenrir Lupin. In this chapter, it's all a dream at the moment. I'm still working on the first chapter so be patient with me. But for now, read the Prologue.

_**Prologue**_

It was dark all around him. He couldn't see outside the beam of light over him. Just blackness. A void of darkness nothing. He turned slowly in every direction to see what there was. His dark brown hair fell over his multicolored eyes as he turned. His heart was beating rapidly against his chest. He didn't know what it was but he was scared of something. But what?

He turned again finally facing a dark hooded figure. He gasped softly stepping back. He didn't know this person. He had never seen him before in his dreams. He had dreamed several things but this one……it felt more real and terrifying. He could feel a eerie aura coming from this hooded figure. Something was not good about it.

He backed away as much as he could as the figure came closer and closer. Only stopping outside the ring of light. He could see the wicked blue eyes glaring at him. He couldn't see anything else but those cruel blue eyes. "Your sanctuary will not keep me away forever, Lupin." That hiss snaked out of the harsh lips.

The boy shook his head as he felt his heart grew heavier. His skin prickled as he felt a coldness fall upon him. He shivered just staring at those eyes. "Stay away from me! Don't come near me!" He demanded. The hooded figure laughed wickedly. A hand rose and reached for him.

When the light touched the hand, it showed the creature's true form, but only by the hand. It was a bony hand of a skeleton. He pressed his back against the invisible wall behind him. He could not go through the line into the darkness. He shook his head fearfully. "N-no! Stay back!" He begged. The skeletal hand stopped only inches from his face then pointed up with one finger.

His amber-blue eyes slowly followed and fell upon a silver white orb slowly peeping behind the clouds. Then pain filled his body. He doubled over and felt like his skin was on fire. He cried out clutching his stomach. He then looked at his hands with wide eyes. They were transforming into hairy claws. He cried out in pain and shock. "Wh-what's happening to me!" He gasped. He arched his back as the pain grew unbearable.

He heard his cloths ripping at the seams. He was transforming into something. He howled with pain which deepened into a wolf's howl. He threw back his head and felt his teeth growing which hurt more. He gasped as the pain started to reside but he felt tired. "Look at the monster you are." He stood straighter but not full. For some reason he couldn't. He was now looking at a mirror. But the reflection was not his own. It was a monsters. "NO!" He howled in a wolf's howl.

A/N: I know that sounds a little strange but I swear it will make sense later. Review and let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Here is the very first chapter of Shaded Past. It will start out a little dark but will get darker as the story goes. Things will be and are happening to Darien that he doesn't understand. And sometimes it scares Hermione and Remus Lupin just a little.

Chapter 1.

He gasped as he jolted awake and sat up. His heart was pounding against his chest and he was breathing hard from being so scared. His face was pale and sweating making his hair matted down around his face. He could hear the morning sounds he was so used to. His younger brothers must have been fighting again. He also heard his mother yelling at them. Darien F. Lupin blew out a long breath of relief. "It was just a dream." He whispered. He ran a hand through his sweaty hair and rubbed his eyes. He was shirtless but he wore his sweat pants.

Darien Fenrir Lupin was an eleven years old. He had dark brown hair and multicolored eyes. One was an amber color and the other was blue. He had boyish feature. He was still short and gangly looking. His mother told him that he would grow up into a handsome young man though. His brothers just both said he would stay ugly. But of course Darien got them back when mother wasn't looking. He got in trouble when he did.

He pushed his covers off and placed his feet on the cool floor and sat there looking down. He closed his eyes to try and remember the dream. He couldn't though. He couldn't remember the dreams. What had scared him so bad to make him wake up like that? He didn't know. He had several weird dreams before but none were like that.

Just then the door opened and his younger brother stuck his head in. "Darien, mom says to get up, you lazy head." The boy sneered. Darien turned around and scowled at the young 9 year old. "Don't you know how to knock, Jamie?" He asked. The little boy stuck his tongue out at his bigger brother and then smirked. "Yeah, I do know how to knock." He looked up at a trophy sitting on the dresser. "Knock things off the dresser!" He said quickly pushing it off the dresser. Darien gasped and tried to leap over the bed to save the trophy but didn't make it in time and watched the trophy fall and the top of it broke in half. Jamie was out the door before Darien could say anything.

Darien growled though with rage. "James Lupin! I'm gonna wring your scrawny neck!" He yelled at the top of his lungs and raced out his room after his little brother. He knew where he was headed. To find their mom to have protection. Darien stormed down the stairs after James squealed in fear as he ran as fast as he could away from his older brother. "Mommy!" He cried as he crashed through the kitchen door.Darien raced after him yelling his name and several threats. "Wait till I get my hands on you, James! Because when I do, I'm going to cut you up into tiny pieces and feed you to Buckbeak!" He yelled. James ran to their mother who was flipping pancakes over when she heard the commotion. She spun around looking surprised.

Two arms wrapped around Darien's chest and held him back from doing any damage to his brother. "Darien Fenrir Lupin! What is that matter with you? Why are you yelling like that so early in the morning?" He heard the stern voice of his father. Darien tried to pull away but Remus Lupin wouldn't let go until his son settled down. The eleven year old stopped trying to pull away and sighed. "He knocked my first place chess trophy off my dresser and it broke." He shot James a dirty look. "Again!"

Hermione Lupin turned sharp eyes on James who cringed under her glare. "James, why did you do that? Didn't I tell you to leave your brother's stuff alone?" She asked sternly. James teared up and started to do his fake crying that usually got him out of trouble. "I d-didn't mean to, mommy. It's just….it's just Darien was being mean to me again!" he cried.

Darien's jaw fell angrily. "I was not! All I said was……" He was cut off by a look from his mother. He grumbled and shut his mouth knowing that look too well. Hermione sighed and shook her head. She looked at her beloved husband. "Remus, will you please…." She paused seeing the smile on Remus' face. "Of course, Swift. Come on, sport. I need to talk to you anyways." Remus said pulling Darien out. The two walked down the hallway to the stairs. Darien was still grumbling. "I hear that, Darien. Don't talk about your brother that way." Remus said amusingly. Darien shook his head as he stomped up the stairs. "It's not fair! James always gets out of trouble! I'm always getting into it just because he's a spoiled whinny little brat who always gets his way!" He exclaimed. 

Remus shook his head as he followed his oldest son up the stairs. "Darien, he's just a kid. One day he's going to find out he can't have everything he wants." He said. Darien rolled his eyes as he lead his dad into his room and swooped up the broken trophy. "Yeah right. He and Peter always gets away with things." He grumbled.

The elder Lupin smiled and shook his head as he pulled out his wand and waved it over the trophy fixing it up within a second. Then he set it up on the dresser. "They're young, Darien, and sometimes your mother spoils them. Don't let them get to you." He said. Darien went over and fell face first onto his bed and laid there mumbling something that Remus didn't catch, who just folded his arms and smirked. "I may be a werewolf, Darien, but I can't hear you when you do that." He said. Darien rolled over and stared up at the ceiling. "I said I can't wait till I go to Hogwarts. I hope I get my letter soon. I just gotta get away from those spoiled brats soon or I'm gonna go insane." He said. Remus grinned digging into his pocket. "Now that was what I was waiting for you to say." He said. Darien lifted his head and looked up at his father. 

Remus walked over and held out an envelope to Darien whose eyes grew wide and a grin that matched his spread out. "My letter! It came!" He asked excitedly. He quickly took the letter and started to tear it open. Remus watched smiling. Darien tore the letter out of the envelope and started reading. He was grinning ear to ear. Jumping off the bed he punched a fist into the air. "Yes! I got it! Alright!" He cheered. Remus laughed while watching his son.

Darien did a crazy little jig which a cross between a waltz and moon walking. He turned and hurried over to his father hugging him. Remus hugged his oldest son tightly. "I am so proud of you, Darien. Very proud." he said in his son's hair. Darien pulled away still grinning. "Wait till mom hears about this! when can I go shopping for my wand?" He asked excitedly. Remus laughed shaking his head. "You'll have to ask your mother. Hurry and get dressed and we'll talk about it over breakfast." He said turning away to leave.

The oldest Lupin child hurried to his closet and grabbed the door knobs. He pulled it open and started forward when he gasped seeing something right there, lunging at him. "Ahhh!" He screamed as he was knocked to the ground. Remus jerked around to see what was going on but smirked. Darien was lying on his back with a small creature with a mask on and it was laughing evilly. Darien blinked looking up at the mask's eyes.

"Peter! How many times do I have to tell you to not hide in my closet!" He then yelled. The youngest Lupin child pushed the mask up and smiled at his brother. "I don't know. I'm only five, Dari. I can't count that high." the boy said. Remus laughed and went over to his sons. He pulled the youngest off his brother and curled him up in his arms. Darien then smiled as he pushed himself up. He could really never stay mad at Peter. He could with James but never Peter. "It's okay, Peter. Just stop doing that." He said pushing himself up. Peter giggled. He hugged his daddy. Remus nodded to his oldest son. "Come on, D. Let's go tell your mother. Maybe we'll get to go to Diagon Alley tonight to get your stuff. " He said. Darien leaped to his feet and began yanking cloths out of his dresser to wear that day. Remus laughed and left with the youngest Lupin child. 

Hermione turned when she heard Remus enter. She smiled at him. "Hey, Remus. Darien finally cooled off?" She asked. Remus smiled as he set his youngest child down in a chair. He went over and wrapped his arms around Hermione's waist. "Yeah. And after he got his letter." He said resting his head on her shoulder.

Mrs. Lupin smiled and tilted her head a little. "He'll probably want to Diagon Alley today." She said. Remus nodded. "Yeah. He said he wanted to get his things as soon as possible. Most likely he'll want to get started on early reading for school. Just like someone I know." He said while kissing her neck and making her giggle. "Ugh! Dad! Mom! Get a room!" They heard James cry out. Hermione giggled and continued cooking while Remus looked at his watch. "Well, I got to go to work. Kingsley is going to meet with the President of Magic from the Americas. He wanted two Aurors there with him." He said. Hermione nodded. 

"All right. Be careful though. Mean the while, kids, come get some pancakes." She said. James and Peter ran over to get some breakfast. Remus was grabbing his travelling cloak out of the closet. Darien walked in. "Going to work, dad?" He asked. Remus nodded. "Don't worry. I'll be home around 3:30 this afternoon. Then we can go to Diagon Alley." He said. Darien grinned. "Cool! Then we can go see Uncle Fred!" He said.

Remus and Hermione laughed and shook their heads. "That's all we need, D. Is more complaints from James just because someone put Stink Powder in his dresser." Hermione said as if trying to give her son a hint. Darien blinked a few times before grinning. He quickly dashed away calling over his shoulder, "I'm going to go see Draco now, bub-bye!" And he was out of the room before anyone could say anything.

Hermione rolled her eyes and turned to face Remus. She lightly smacked his arm. "He takes after you too well." She said. Remus laughed as he pulled her into a kiss, only to earn two, "Eeewww!", from James and Peter and a giggle from his beloved Swiftstar.

Darien walked down the hall towards the black door. He frowned as he approached the door then pushed it open. Looking around the semi dark room, his multicolored eyes landed on the bed near the window with dark drapes. The paid nurse was sitting next to it reading the newspaper. She looked up seeing him and smiled. "Morning, Darien. Come to see Mr. Malfoy again?" She asked. Darien nodded slowly. The nurse nodded and stood. "Come on in. I'll just leave you two alone. Just don't be long." She said as she left the room.

Darien nodded then walked over to the empty chair and sat down. He looked at the sleeping form of Draco Malfoy. The nurse was taking pretty good care of him. Even though his skin was alittle pale from being lifeless. His hair had grown just a little longer but they kept it trimmed. He was kept well fed. It was sad to see that this poor fool had lost everything.

"Hey, Draco. It's me, Darien. Again. How are you doing?" Darien asked as if Draco could hear. There was a moment of silence. "That bad, huh?" Darien asked as if Draco answered. He leaned back in his chair. "Guess what? I had one of those weird dreams again. I can't remember this one though. Not well, anyway. I'm not sure why I'm having these dreams." He said. Silence. Darien turned and rested his elbows on the side of the bed. "I think...I think there's something weird going on. I don't know what it is but I'm not sure I want to know." He paused. His eyes lit up. "You want me to tell you about it? Okay." He said.

Outside the door, Hermione was listening with a smile. She shook her head. She always listened to Darien talking to Draco. It was so amusing to listen to him when he was having 'conversations' with Draco Malfoy. Not that it was normal though. But she found it very fascinating about the spirit her son had.

"Well, I can't really remember too well. It was kind of dark. I...I was standing alone. I remember seeing red eyes. Wicked red eyes. It was so weird. And there was this chilly feeling. I felt cold. It was so weird. You should have been there." Darien said with a short laugh. There was a small silence. "No. I haven't found it yet. I asked mom one time what was the possibility to find a Dementor who had someone's soul and she said it wasn't really possible. But I'm still not going to give up. I'll find it. I know I will." Darien spoke up. Hermione tilted her head with a small hint of confusion on her face. 'Darien is still looking for that Dementor, huh?' She thought. She shook her head and kept listening.

"No, Draco. I'm not going to give it up. I made you a promise when I was five and I'm going to stick with it. Hey! That's not very nice. I'm not being that childish." Darien said with offense. "Draco, I told you. I'm not giving up until I've found the Dementor with your soul. I know it'll show up some time. It's gotta." The eleven year old said. There was a long silence. "Huh? What do you mean?" Hermione peeped around the door to see what was going on.

Darien had a look of confusion on his face. He was looking straight at Draco's face. "What do you mean watch out for the Umbra? What the hell is the Umbra?" He asked. Hermione frowned at her son's language and pushed open the door. "Darien Fenrir Lupin!" She said sharply. Darien jumped and slipped off the chair crashing to the ground. He quickly stood up and stared wide eyed at his mother. "What did I tell you about swearing?" Hermione asked as she walked forward putting her hands on her waist.

Darien winced and looked down. "Uh...swear only when your mad?" He offered. Hermione gave him a dull look. "Darien." She scolded. Darien grumbled. "Alright, alright. I won't swear again. I'm sorry." He said. Hermione rolled her eyes and shook her head. She moved over to Draco's other side and fixed his blanket. "I swear, Darien. Your getting more like your Uncle Sirius every day." She said wearily. "Um, mom? What's the Umbra?" Darien asked. Hermione looked at him with confusion. "The what?" She asked. Darien shrugged. "Draco said something about the Umbra. He said that it was dangerous and I needed to watch out for it. He said it wanted me." he said. Hermione gave a short surprised laugh. "Well, that is quite the imagination. I've never heard of the Umbra. Plus, Draco can't talk anymore." She said. Darien shook his head. "Not entirely. He can't actually talk. But he can spiritually." He said. 

Hermione gave him a look. "What are you talking about?" She asked with a smile growing. Darien folded his arms. "Well...it's kinda hard to explain, mom. You know how Draco's soul was sucked out by the Dementor, right? Well, it still exists. It hasn't been destroyed or anything. Not unless the Dementor who stole it was destroyed." He said. Hermione unblinking at her oldest then shook her head looking tired. "My goodness, Darien. Your making my brain spin. No more of those supernatural movies for you. Now go play. Draco has to rest to keep up his strength." She said.

Darien shrugged and looked back at Draco. "See. I told you she wouldn't believe me." He said before leaving the room. Hermione looked back at Draco Malfoy's form with suspicion then shook her head rolling her eyes. "That kid is going to give me an early grave. I swear it." She said shaking her head. She left the room, leaving the young man to sleep. As soon as she left, Draco's eyes opened then closed again.

Later around 4:00, Remus had gotten home. He walked right into the front room where his family was watching TV. He smiled seeing them all. Hermione was sitting in her chair. James and Peter laid on their stomachs propping up their heads. Remus leaned against the doorframe with his hands in his pockets. Hermione sensed him and turned her head to see him. She glanced to her two youngest and stood. She walked out to the hall with Remus. "Remus." She said shortly. Remus could sense a small disappointment in her tone. He frowned. "What is it, Swift?" He asked. Hermione folded her arms. "I thought you were going to be home at 3:30." She said. Remus sighed shaking his head. "We had a little trouble in the office. Neville lit his office on fire. Again." he said. Hermione laughed shaking her head. "Neville Longbottom. I should have known. Even though he's grown up he's still a little klutzy." She then frowned. 

"Darien's a little disappointed that your late." She said. Remus blew out a sigh. "We still can go to Diagon Alley even though I'm a little late." He said. Hermione smiled shaking her head. "Yeah, but you have lost an hour of shopping time." She said. Remus laughed shaking his head. He kissed Hermione on the cheek and turned to go up the stairs. Hermione smiled as she watched him go up the stairs.

Remus went up the stairs and right into Darien's room. Darien was on his bed writing something in his journal. He was humming a song that Remus knew too well. It was a song that Hermione made up. A song that had to deal with The Lupin Family's favorite poem, Star Light, Star Bright. Remus smiled as he leaned against the door.

Darien tilted his head and stopped humming. "Hi, dad." He said without looking up. Remus smiled even more. "How'd you know it was me?" He asked. Darien shrugged as he continued to write. "Uncle Romulus told me." He said softly. Remus froze right there. 'How did Darien know about Romulus?' He thought. He walked in. "Really? When did he do that?" He asked curiously. Darien looked up and grinned. "Just joking." He laughed. Remus blinked a few times before smiling.

"Ready to go shopping?" He asked. Darien returned the grin and nodded as he slammed his journal shut and jumped off his bed. He quickly pulled on his shoes and grabbed his jacket. "Can we go now? Can we? Can we? Can we?" He asked very quickly. Remus laughed and shook his head. "Yeah. Go tell your mother we're leaving soon." He told him. Darien nodded and raced out of the room. Remus watched him for a second before pausing to look at Darien's journal. He slowly walked over and picked it up, examining it. Then a small slip of paper fell from the book landing on the floor. Remus looked down at it before bending over and picking it up. On the paper was writing. It read: _The Umbra? Shadows _Remus stared at it for a minute before putting the journal and the note down and walking out. 

The two Lupins had finally arrived in Diagon Alley. Darien looked so excited that he was practically jumping up and down. Actually, he was. Remus was laughing as he watched his son bounce on his heels with excitement. "Settle down, Darien. We only just got here." He said with a laugh. Darien blushed as he stopped jumping.

They went to Madam Malkins first to get his robes. After that they went to Flourish and Botts. As Remus was getting Darien's books, Darien was having a small look around. He was glancing at books that he couldn't get yet. He spotted another book that was just sitting on a stand with a velvet pillow. Being too curious he usually was, Darien walked over and looked at it before picking it up. It had no title. It was just black. Darien flipped to the first page and looked it over. There was the most interesting thing he ever seen. It was like someone's journal. There were small pictures drawn into it and writing Darien couldn't understand. It looked like it was in Latin. He knew that his mother could read Latin. He wondered if he could buy it and see if she would read it to him. But his answer came right at that very second. 

"Hey, sonny. Put that book back! It's not for sale." The book keeper called to him. Darien jumped and turned around. Remus was looking over his shoulder at him with interest. The keeper looked peeved. "Uh….sorry. I didn't know." Darien said setting it back down. That was then he noticed the small sign that said _Do not touch, not for sale._

Remus looked at the keeper. "Mr. Botts, if it is not for sale, what is it doing out here?" He asked curiously. The keeper sighed. "It's just for looks." He told him. Darien walked over to his father and waited till he had all his books. Then the two left. They finally went to Ollivander's Wand shop to get Darien's wand. And he was very excited for this one. They had just entered and looked around to see if they could see Mr. Ollivander. The old man wasn't anywhere in sight. Remus looked around before calling out for him. "Mr. Ollivander?" He called. There was no answer. Darien began looking at displays of wands on a table. He was starting to reach out to take one when there someone grabbed his hand. It was his father. He shook his head. "Don't touch, Darien. Sometimes if you touch a wand that wasn't meant for you it can set off a spell." He told him. 

Darien nodded. That was then the old man came in from the back wiping his hands. "Ah, Remus Lupin. What a wonderful surprise. How are you doing?" He asked. Remus nodded. "I've been doing just fine, sir. Just bringing my son in to buy his first wand." He said putting his hand on Darien's shoulder. Mr. Ollivander smiled. "Ah, Darien Fenrir Lupin. It's great to see you too." He turned and began looking through little boxes.

Darien looked at his father with wide eyes. Remus just gave him a smile and a wink. The young 11 year old shrugged and looked at Mr. Ollivander who was returning with a wand. He handed it to Darien who took it. "11 ½ inches. Birch and unicorn tail hair. Good for Charms." He said. Darien nodded and waved. Nothing had happened. "Hmm. Interesting. But no worry. We'll find your wand." The old man said. They began going through wand to wand. But for some reason none of the wands would work for Darien. Even Remus was starting to look a little worried.

They must have been through over a hundred wands already. "Hm. That is strange. Very strange indeed." Ollivander said as he continued to look for the right wand. He pulled another down for Darien and went over to the boy. "Here try this one. 12 1/2 inchs. Holly and Ebony. Very good for spoken spells." He said. Darien took it, as he was holding his breath. He gave it a wave. Again nothing happened. Ollivander shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't understand. That is all my wands. The last time I had a picky customer it was Harry Potter and his wand." He stopped and his eyes lit up. Remus shook his head. "There must be a wand for my son somewhere here. That can't be all of them." He said. Ollivander rubbed his chin. "I wonder..." He looked at Remus.

"There is one other wand I have. But I have never pulled it out for a long time. It has never been used for many years." He said. He turned and went into the far back. Darien looked worriedly up his father. "Dad, what if the wand won't work? What if there is no wand for me? What would that mean?" He asked. Remus smiled faintly down at Darien. "Don't worry about it. Of course there's a wand for you. You've already been accepted into Hogwarts so there must be. Unless you are very high in wandless magic but I sort of doubt that. Dumbledore would have said something in a letter or told me personally. Or your mother." He said. Darien nodded still looking worried.

Ollivander came back to the front with a very long box. It was at least 15 inchs long. It was in a dark green leather case and had a little bit of dust on it. The old man paused to look at Darien then walked up to him pulling out the wand. Darien's eyes lit up seeing it. It was a very deep black with a reddish tint color. The most strangest wand have ever seen. Even Remus looked confused of the color. "This is a very special wand, Young Lupin. This is one of the most oldest wands in our world, yet it has never aged like other wands. No finger prints can be left upon it. No matter what. I've had this wand for a very long time and it has never picked a handler." Ollivander said. Darien stared at the old man's blue eyes with his multicolored ones. He slowly nodded. The old man carefully handed it to Darien, who took it.

But strange, once Darien took it, the coolness of the wand, warmed up immediately. He could almost feel a pulse inside it. It startled him a little yet he didn't jump like others would have. Even Ollivander's eyes lit up with surprise. "Well...I see." he whispered. Remus looked at the man. "What?" He asked. The old man shook his head. "Mr. Darien Lupin, please wave that wand towards that pile of wand boxes." He said pointing to the corner of his desk. Darien nodded and flicked the wand towards the boxes.

Suddenly just like that, the boxes straightened and the wands that belonged in them shot into the boxes. Then the lids slammed onto the boxes and they all flew to the shelves placing theirselves in order. Darien and Remus' eyes were wide. They knew that had never happened with no wand before. But what was so special about this one? Ollivander looked a little surprised himself. He cupped his hand over his mouth as he tried to think. "Mr. Ollivander? Was that suppose to happen?" Remus asked. Ollivander looked at him. "No. Not really. I didn't expect it to happen." He looked at the young Lupin.

"This one, like I have said is one of our oldest wands. It is over a thousand years old." He said. Again surprised looks on Remus and Darien's face. Ollivander smiled though. "It's about time it had a new owner anyway. The wood is a strange type of wood and it's not used anymore. Long ago before myself, a wizard made this wand and he used it. The wood is called Bloodwood. It's very useful in Divination. And it possesses perfect matters for the heart and healing. That is why you feel a pulse through the wand. It contains the essence of Phoenix Ash." He pualsed looking at Remus. "Tell me, Remus. In your school years, how was your skills for divination?" He asked. Remus jiggled his hand a little as if saying so-so. "It was probably my worst subject." he said. Ollivander nodded slowly. "Uh-huh...how about the mother's? Hermione's skills?" He asked. Remus' face fell a little. "Oh, she wouldn't want me to say it but she doesn't possess the art of Divination. She admits it once in awhile." He said.

Ollivander smiled faintly. "Yes...I see. Well," He looked at Darien. "Congradulations, Darien. You have your wand. A very promising wand I must say. It has it's own great history. But I can't really say. You can probably find the answer in a history book somewhere. But I do hope you will enjoy that wand." He said. Darien smiled and nodded. "Thank you sir." He said. Ollivander nodded. "Your welcome." He said. The two Lupins started out. "Oh, Remus. Might I have a word for a second." He asked. Remus nodded pulling back. "Just stay outside, Darien." He told his son, who nodded and obeyed. He stepped out but kept the the door open to eavsdrop.

"Remus, I know this sounds strange, but I understand you have a position at Hogwarts again as the DADA teacher once more." Ollivander said. Remus nodded. "Yes. Albus Dumbledore wanted me to return to that position." He said. "Good. The strange thng I must ask, when Darien is sorted into his house, will you please inform me of what house?" The old man asked. There was a long silence. "Why?" Remus asked softly. Another long silence. "Because the maker and only owner of that wand was none other than Salazar Slytherin."

A/N: 0.0! Uh-oh! Not a good thing, right? We'll have to see. Tell me what you think of this first chapter by reviewing.


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: I'm glad your already enjoying the story. Like I said, this will sort of start of a little dark but will get darker later on. But there will be a few humorous parts. One, Darien's new friends that he will meet and another, Sirius Black still works at the castle. He still likes to do a few pranks to make people laugh. Anyway, let's go on.

* * *

Chapter 2.

Darien was laid out on his bed, staring up at his wand in his hand. The blackish red wand. He was a little surprised still of what Ollivander had told his father about the wand. He didn't understand. How could a wand like this pick him, a Lupin. Someone who was going to be in Gryffindor. That was then, a choke escaped Darien. His eyes went wider. The wand of Slytherin picked him...what if he wasn't going to be in Gryffindor? What if it was going to be Slytherin. He had remembered all the things his mother had said about Slytherin. She even told him how she always fought Slytherin students. Thinking about it made Darien more nervous. He remembered the very first thing Remus had said when they left the shop. _"Don't tell your mother." _He said in a concerned tone.

And as soon as they got home, Darien had been swarmed by James and Peter who wanted to see his wand. Darien showed it to them. The two younger siblings looked at it with wonder and awe. "Wow, look at the color of it. It looks like black blood." James said. Hermione had walked in when he said that. She took one look at the wand then looked at Remus for an answer. Remus smiled. "Ollivander said that it was a very promising wand. Darien's wand is a very good one." He said. Hermione smiled proudly and hugged Darien. That is, until James tried to snatch Darien's wand and run off to play it. Hermione had started yelling at him to give it back. But she never got to finish her sentence because as soon as James was down the hall, something happened.

The wand magically yanked out of James' hand, knocking the poor kid off his feet and landing on his back and flew straight back to Darien. Both Peter and Darien started laughing while Remus and Hermione looked concerned. They both hurried to help James up and then looked at the wand. "Uh...I think it likes Darien very much." Remus offered as a suggestion. Hermione couldn't help but smile weakly and nodded. "I sure say so." She told him.

And now, Darien was in his room just looking at it. Just twirling it slowly with his fingers trying to study it. "Why did you pick me?" He whispered. He had spotted a very small letter near the handle. The letter S was on it in what looked like red ink. But something told Darien that it wasn't ink at all. It wasn't paint or anything. He knew it was only one thing. Blood.

That night, Darien couldn't sleep again. He was having those weird dreams as always. The ones that creeped him out. It was the same dream he had the night before. The dream about the darkness all around him and then those dark red eyes on him. He was standing in the beam of light again looking terrified. His back against the invisible wall. "Stay away from me!" He yelled as the black cloaked, red eyed person walked closer. "Your sanctuary will not always protect you, Darien. The light will go one of these times. No one will be watching. And I will have you." The hissy voice spoke.

Darien shivered as he kept his eyes on the figuare. "Who are you...what do you want from me!" He cried out with fear. The figuare began to circle outside the light. Darien quickly moved away as he did. "It's not what I want. It's what my inner demon want." The figure spoke to the scared boy. "Wh-what do they want?" Darien stammered. He could almost seeing the dark face under the hood sneer. "Your inner demon." He hissed as he lunged forward, into the light. Darien gasped as he saw what it wasy. He let out a loud cry of endless fear. Darien saw a monster under that hood.

He jolted up from bed giving a small cry of panic. He could feel the cold sweat beads rolling down his face and back. He was drenched. Again he only wore his boxer shorts and no shirt. His heart was pounding even harder against his chest. He was shaking violently from being so scared. His multicolored eyes slowly looked around. It was still very dark outside and in his room. He could see the half quarter moon through his widow. The street lights were flickering a little, threatening to go out. Darien covered his face with one hand and then rubbed his eyes as he plopped backwards onto his pillow. He stared up at the cieling still trying to control his breathing. "What is going on?" He whispered.

Just then his door slowly cracked open and a slight breeze blew in from the hall. Darien propped himself up with his elbows looking over. It was very quiet yet he could almost hear a whisper. "No, I'm alright. Don't worry about me. It was just a bad dream." Darien whispered as if talking to someone. He stared at the crack as if someone was standing there. "No, I promise. I'm okay. I can handle a bad dream, Uncle George." He said with a smile. There was a small silence that made Darien smile even more. "Yeah, close the door on your way out. Thanks. Say hi to Uncle Charlie too, kay?" He asked. The door closed on its own. Darien laid back on his pillow and went back to sleep.

The few days passed and Darien was reading his new school books. Just to be ready for the classes he would be taking. He wanted to be ready. He would sometimes just stare at his wand with interest. Trying to figure out if it really had belong to Salazar Slytherin at one time. He wasn't really sure. He guess he had to deal with it. It was his wand now not Slytherin's. He sometimes teased his brothers, especially James, that he was going to cast a spell on them. They would go crying to their mother and Darien would get lectured.

Finally it was the day. September 1st. The day that Darien would be going to Hogwarts as a student and Remus was going to be a teacher again. He wondered what it was going to be like having a father as his professor. He felt a little awkward. He hoped that the other students wouldn't mind. He really hoped he'd make some new friends too. He never really had any friends except a few muggle kids that didn't know anything about his magical heritage. He really wanted a friend who was just like him.

Darien was making sure he had everything. He had packed all of his things into his trunk. He made sure his cloths were tucked in and his books were laying on top. He had every thing all ready. All he had to do was drag his trunk downstairs to the hall way and tell Remus that he was ready to go. He was wearing blue jeans and a black tee shirt with the logo of nike on it. He wore his tennis shoes with a wallet chain hanging down by his side. And in addition, he put on a black flamed hat, backwards.

He pulled his trunk right behind him down the stairs where he saw Remus' trunk waiting near the door. Darien could hear everyone in the kitchen. He turned and walked towards the door finding them all eating breakfast. Hermione smiled as soon as her oldest walked in. "Good morning, hun. How did you sleep last night?" She asked. Darien shrugged as grabbed some toast. "I couldn't. I'm too excited." He said. Remus laughed and shook his head. "I wouldn't blame you." He told him. Peter stood up in his chair and turned around. "Dari, can I see your wand again, pleeeease?" He asked. Darien looked at his father first, who met his eyes. He gave a soft nod saying he could. Darien pulled out his wand again and held it out for Peter to see. James just looked at it from his chair. Darien held it out with one hand. "It's a really cool wand." He said with a smile. Hermione held out a hand and he put it in her head. She examined it. "It's very interesting. I have never seen a wand like this. What's it made out of?" She asked. Both Remus and Darien looked at each other.

"Uh..." Darien paused. Hermione rose an eyebrow at Remus. "Moony, what are you hiding?" She asked. Remus smiled at Hermione. "Nothing. Only the fact that it's made out Bloodwood." He said. Hermione blinked a few times. "Bloodwood? I'm not familiar with that type of wood. What else?" She asked. Darien was catching what his father's motives were. "Phoenix ash." He piped up cheerfully. Hermione looked at him. "Phoenix ash?" She asked. Remus nodded. "Ollivander told us it's a very good wand." He told his wife. Hermione nodded. "Sure looks like it." She said. Remus looked at his watch. "Oh! We have to go! We'll miss the train!" He said. Darien quickly took his wand and raced towards the door. "Shit! I told Draco I was going to say goodbye to him! Hold on a sec!" He cried out. Remus winced looking at Hermione who gave him a dark look. "I swear, that kid is not going to hang out with Sirius anymore. Not until he changes his language." She said. Remus laughed.

Darien quickly hurried over to Draco's side in his room. "Draco! It's time for me and dad to go. I'm going to Hogwarts finally!" He said grinning. A long silence. "Yeah, I'm really excited. I hope I get in Gryffindor." The boy said. Again another silence. Darien frowned. "Heeey! Gryffindor is not for pansies. My mum and dad were in Gryffindor. So was Harry Potter!" He said. He smiled as if Draco had told him something funny. "Well...I don't know. I guess it would be okay to be in Slytherin but I've heard some really bad things about it. It's because of Voldemort, ya know. And then there's that legend that you told me about Salazar Slytherin." His eyes lit up. "Speaking of which," He paused pulling out the wand. "You will not believe this, but this wand...Ollivander told me it used to be Salazar Slytherin's wand."

There was a long uncomfortable silence. Darien narrowed his eyes a little. "Draco, say something please. With you being quiet like that it's kind of weird." He said sounding a little uncomfortable. He listened to the ever so silent young man sleeping in in the bed, or so it seemed. "I swear, that's what's he said." Darien said making an X across his chest. "I don't know, Draco. I know it sounds weird but...I have a bad feeling something's gonna happen. And something not pleasant. Remember my dreams I told you about? They're getting worst." He said. Another silence. "I will be careful. I promise. Uh-huh. Okay, I'll inform you every time. Look I gotta go. Dad says we'll miss the train if we don't hurry." He said.

Darien stared at the white blonde. He smiled and gave him a slight hug then ran out. "See ya later!" He called over his shoulder. As soon as he left, Draco's eyes opened again. Showing nothing but an emptiness and lifelessness. The dead blue color slowly turned to look in the darkest corner, narrowing just a little. Then they closed.

Darien and Remus had made it on time which was a very big relief. They both put Darien's trunks in the baggage card first. Then Remus'. "So, your riding the train right, dad?" Darien asked as they walked down the plateform. Remus nodded. "They have a new car for teachers who ride the train so we won't be able to ride together. But you should be alright." He said. Darien nodded. "It's fine, Dad." He told him. Remus patted his son on the head before going to the teacher's car. Darien settled himself in an empty compartment and stared out at the window at some of the family. He had seen two young blonde twins, a girl and a boy. But they looked like they were arguing and their father was trying to break it up. That is until the sister slugged her brother in the stomach and stomped off. Darien cringed and couldn't but laugh. "Well I can tell I don't want to get her mad." He whispered to himself.

He sat there for a bit longer when he heard something going on in the hall. It sounded like someone was fighting. Darien stood and moved towards the door looking up and down until he spotted what the problem was. There three boys picking on a very small looking boy. Two of them were giving him a helluva wedgie, the poor kid. Darien frowned deeply as he stepped out of the compartment. "Hey! Leave that kid alone!" He said walking over. The three turned around looking at who was addressing them. They all sneered when they saw it was just a kid a little smaller than them.

The first was a rich boy looking kid. He had blonde and vicious blue eyes. His face was thin and fair shaped. He wore a uniform like he had just gotten out of prep school. His hair was slick back too. The next boy which was a big lug looking kid had the look of a mean boar. His nose round and a little squashed as if he had run into a brick wall. His face very round as well as his body. But Darien could see that it wasn't fat he was looking at. This kid was stronger than he looked. He had red shaggy hair. He was more likely Irish. The third was a thin but strong looking kid. He had short black hair and wicked dark eyes. His nose a little pointed making him look like he was a little nosey and he probably was.

"Excuse me? Are you talking to us?" The blonde asked. He even sounded like a little rich boy. Darien glared at them. "Yeah, I am. Leave that kid alone!" He said. The blonde stepped forward. "Make us." He said with a smirk. Darien narrowed his eyes dangerously. But before he could say anything, he spotted something bright red flying in the air aiming right at Mister Blondie. Darien quickly jumped back as the water balloon hit the blondie right in the head. Water exploded all over the rich boy making him gasp as he had just become soaking wet. The two lugs dropped the little kid and spun around only to get hit in the face by a blue water balloon and a yellow one. Several kids who had been watching all started laughing. Darien looked past the three bullies and spotted one of the twins he had seen earlier on the plateform. The one his sister had slugged. He was laughing pretty hard until the two big lugs charged after him followed by the rich boy. The blonde grinned and took of running.

Darien's attention went to the little boy who was struggling to unwedgie himself without anyone watching. He stood with his face looking down. "Hey, you alright?" Darien asked stepping closer. The boy looked up and Darien got a good look at him. He was pretty small and delicate looking but he could see that this kid was more than he looked. He had a strong look in his eyes. His hair was cut short and he had soft brown eyes. He wore a black tee shirt and blue jeans. A white long sleeved shirt under the black one. He looked like he was nine but something told Darien that he was older than he looked. "Yeah. I'm alright. Thanks for the help." The kid said. Darien nodded and held out his hand with a smile. "Hey, I'm Darien Lupin." He said. The boy smiled and took the bigger boy's hand. "Rex Rory." He said. Darien nodded back to his compartment. "Want to come sit with me?" He asked. Rex Rory nodded. "Yeah, thanks." He said. They went to sit down.

"What was that about?" Darien asked as he closed the door. Rex Rory sighed. "They were just being mean because of my size. I couldn't defend myself because I'm really small." He said. Darien nodded. "How old are you anyway? This your first year going to Hogwarts?" He asked. Rex nodded. "Uh-huh. I'm 11. I just look really young. I was just born really small that's all. I'm not a migit as they thought I'm just small." he said. Darien laughed and nodded.

They talked for a little bit until the door slammed open then shut. It was the blonde twin boy again. He was laughing. He turned to look at the two boys staring up at him. "Finally lost them. Hey, mind if I sit in here? It's kind of full." He said. Darien and Rex looked at each other then nodded. "Sure." They both piped up. The blonde sat down and let out a long sigh. He grinned at them. "Hey, there. The name's Lionel Boyd!" He said offering his hand to Rex first. Rex shook it. "Rex Rory Kegerreis." He said. Darien glanced at Rex before shaking Lionel's hand next. "Darien Lupin. Nice to meet you." he said. Lionel nodded before slumping back. He looked over at Rex. "You alright? Saw Whitman and his goons picking on you so I thought it would be a good idea to break it up." He said. Rex nodded. Darien eyed Lionel. "Whitman?" He asked. Lionel nodded. "Ian Whitman. A rich mama's little boy. He's a little punk too. Thinks he's all that." He said. Darien nodded. "Hey, do you have a twin? Because I saw you on the plateform and she decked you pretty hard." He told him.

Lionel rolled his eyes as his long bangs fell into his eyes and he just tossed them back. "Yeah, that'd be Leoni, my twin sister. She's kind of a bad tempered brat. I don't see how we're related. Only that we look alike. But we're totally opposite personalities." He said. Darien laughed and sat back. The three continued to talk until the stewardess pushing the food cart came up. "Anything off the trolley?" She asked. Rex lowered his head with a slight blush. "Nah, that's alright." he said. Lionel and Darien met eyes thinking the same thing. They both grinned. "We'll take three of everything." They both said. They paid for their food and shared with Rex.

The train had began to go and they continued to talk about their families. Darien learned a few things about the two. Rex was an only child of his family and was muggle born. He was really excited when he recieved his letter. He had never guessed that he would be a wizard. He had a small family though. Lionel was a pure blood. And he was from Germany. He was suppose to go to Durmstrang but he talked his parents into letting him go to Hogwarts instead. And his sister, Leoni went with it. She didn't really care what school she went to. Just as long as she learned something. Darien told them about his family. Both Rex and Lionel were surprised that his parents were Hermione and Remus Lupin.

"Yeah it's great but what's so special about that?" Darien asked with a little confusion. Lionel shrugged. "Well...it sort of has to deal with those books that your mum wrote. My mother is a big fan of her's." He said. Darien nodded knowing where he was getting at. "Oh, you mean her life story about how she broke a time turner and yeah." He said. Rex nodded. "Not to mention she's Harry Potter's best friend." He said. Darien rolled his eyes with a smile.

Just then the door opened and two girls walked in. One was Lionel's twin. One look at her brother she rolled her eyes. "Uh, never mind. I don't want to sit in here." She said turning away. The other girl caught her arm. "Come on." She looked at the boys. "You guys don't mind if we sit in here?" She asked. Darien shook his head. "I don't care." He said. Rex nodded. "Me neither." He said. Lionel just gave his twin a look. "You can. She can't." He said. Bam! He got slugged in the arm by his twin. "Shut up, Lionel." She said sitting down the opposite side from her brother.

Leoni looked exactly like her brother only her hair was very long. It ran down to her upper back which she kept it in a tight ponytail. Her eyes were sapphire blue while her brother's was leaf green. She was wearing her school robes already. The other girl was a little shorter than her. She had long black hair that went past her shoulder blades. Her eyes and dark blue eyes. She too wore her robes. She sat next to Lionel. "Well, since we're going to be riding together I guess we'll need to introduce ourselves. "I'm Samara Grogen." She said. Everyone made their introductions. "Samara, huh? I think I've seen you before. Aren't the girl from The Ring who goes around killing people in seven days?" Lionel joked.

Bam! He got slugged again only this time harder in the stomach. Lionel doubled over. "Shut up, Lionel!" Leoni and Samara both snapped. Samara folded her arms looking angry. "Call me Sam." She told them. Darien and Rex were staring with wide eyes but they nodded. "Okay. Just don't slug us please." Rex said weakly. Sam smirked. "Don't piss me off and we'll get along fine." She said. Darien tilted his head. "So, where you from, Sam? Your not originally from Europe are you?" He asked unwrapping a chocolate frog. Sam shook her head. "No. I'm actually from the Americas. I would be going to Salem but I had trouble with the folks and they decided to send me to live with my aunt." She said. They all nodded. "So is it any better?" Rex asked. Sam nodded. "Oh yeah. I love my aunt. She's a witch too." She told them. They all nodded and continued to talk.

It was getting very dark now outside. Thick black clouds were in the sky. Darien was looking out into the night. He couldn't really see anything but he was also listening to Lionel and Leoni arguing about something that didn't involve him. They were saying something about what houses they might in. Darien glanced over at them for a second before turning back towards the window. He came face to face with something flying outside the window looking right at him. "Ah!" He cried out leaping to his feet. Everyone in the compartment jumped and looked. What Darien saw had vanished. As if he was only seeing things. "What! What is it?" Lionel asked. Darien looked back out the window looking up then down. "There was something out there." He said. Everyone stood and looked out the window. "I don't see anything." Sam said looking around. "Me niether." Rex piped up. Darien shook his head. "I swore I saw something out there."

Suddenly someone tapped on his shoulder softly. Darien jumped very high, making the others jump and everyone screamed or yelled as they spun around. "Ahhhhh!" They all fell over each other or on the seats. There stood Remus, with his eyebrow rose and was laughing. "Dad!" Darien gasped clutching his chest. Remus laughed as he looked them all over. "Darien, what are you doing?" He asked. All of the eleven year olds gasped trying to catch their breath. Darien looked wildly at his father. "We were just looking out the window. I thought I saw something out there." He said climbing off of Lionel. Remus looked the others over. "Really? So I see your making new friends. Want to introduce them?" He asked. Everyone sat back down while Remus sat next to his son. Darien introduced them all. "Everyone this is my Dad, Remus Lupin. He's teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts class this year." He said. Everyone nodded. "That's cool. I wish my dad would teach a class. If he did, I wouldn't get in detention." Lionel said lounging back. Leoni rolled her eyes. "Lionel, don't be stupid." She said. Lionel stuck his tongue out at his sister.

Darien laughed and shook his head. "If your worried I'm going to get a special treatment just because my dad's our professor, don't be. He doesn't do that, do ya?" He said. Remus shook his head. "No, not really. I treat all the students the same way. Darien being my son or not." he said. Darien nodded. "I don't expect my dad to give me extra points for no reason or anything. He can't really do that." He said. Remus nodded. "Speaking of which, I came to see how you were doing and remind you to get dressed in your school robes. We'll be arriving soon." He said. Everyone nodded. "Okay." Darien said. Remus gave the others a smile. "See you at the feast." He said and left. Darien, Lionel and Rex looked at the two girls before pointing to the door. "Out." The girls both giggled and left so they could get dressed.

The train came to a stop and everyone was getting off. Darien was with his new friends. He tried to see where Remus had gone. He hoped that he would get to ride with him. But he wasn't anywhere to be seen. But he did hear that familiar voice that just made him grin. "First years! First years this way!" Darien turned around and saw the man standing on a small wall trying to get the first years' attentions. He held up a lanturn so that they would know who was talking. The man was tall, about Remus' height. He had long black hair that he kept tied back. He wore black robes and a pale complexion but not as bad as Darien had seen in a few of the wanted posters when he was wanted for a crime he didn't commit.

Darien hurried over with the others following behind him. The man turned his black eyes onto Darien walking up. A grin spread out on his face when he spotted. "Hey, Darien. I almost forgot this was your first year." Sirius Black said holding out his hand for a highfive. Darien complied with his own grin. "Hey, Sirius. How's it going?" He asked. Sirius shrugged. "Just fine. It's my turn to gather the first years this year. Hagrid had to feed a bunch of those blasted Thestrals. They got lose from their pens so they won't be pulling the coaches tonight. Come along, First years." He called waving his arm. "Anyway, saw Remus. What's your thoughts on having your dad teaching you this year?" He asked still waving his arm. Darien shrugged. "Just the same as always. It's pretty cool I guess. But I don't want any special treatments or anything." he said. Sirius nodded as he began leading the first year students towards the boats. "Yeah, I get that." He said. He pointed to the boats. "Four to a boat, kids." he instructed.

Everyone climbed in. Darien was riding with Sirius, Lionel and Rex. Darien and Sirius talked on the way there. "So dad went ahead? Is it because of the teachers?" He asked. Sirius nodded. "Yep. Being a teacher again he had to greet the students. You'll be seeing him later though." He said. Darien nodded. "So how are things going at Hogwarts?" He asked. Sirius sent him a grin. "Well, there's a few new teachers this year. There's a new Divination teacher. Don't really know who he is though. Never seen him before. I shouldn't spoil it for you. So you'll have to wait." He said with a grin. Darien, Lionel and Rex laughed. They soon went around the bend and got to see the castle. Darien's eyes lit up with excitement. The castle was beautiful. The lights were all on and shining on the lake. There were several gasps from other students. Sirius stood to look at everyone. "Welcome to Hogwarts!"


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: In this chapter you'll get to see what house Darien will be in. Plus you'll get to see a ghost that no one has ever seen before. Now I had a hard time trying to make up the Sorting Hat's new song so if it's kind of stupid, please just be nice. Let's go on.

Chapter 3.

Darien was amazed by the castle. Sure he had seen pictures of it from his parents' photo album but they were nothing compared to the real thing. He could tell the others were just as surprised just by the looks on their faces. Of course some students looked bored. Like that Ian Whitman. He looked like he wasn't surprised. Darien tore his eyes away from the blonde brat and looked forward. There standing at the top of the stairs was an old woman whom Darien recognized in a picture as Professor McGonagall.

She was just standing there in her black dress robes and pointed hat. Her cat like eyes on the students with a slight stern but welcoming look. She was wearing her reading glasses of course. Her hands were folded together in front of her. She looked at student before pausing on Darien. Darien could see a smile threatening to show itself but she did a very good job keeping it from becoming a full smile. Sirius stepped up to her. "Here's the first years, Professor." He said. McGonagall nodded. "Thank you, Sirius." She told him. Sirius nodded before looking at Darien and giving him a wink and a smile. Darien smiled back and watched his sort of uncle go into the grand hall.

McGonagall turned back to the students looking them over again. "In a few moments you will go through these doors and the sorting will begin. You will each be sorted into one of these four houses. Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or Slytherin. It will only depend on what your qualities are that you will get into that house. Now each house will be like your family. Every good deed or right thing will earn you points. Any rulebreaking or uncalled for activities will lose you points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points will win the House cup. Any questions you may have ask it now." She said. No one spoke. She nodded with satisfaction and beckoned for them to follow her. They walked in to the grand room.

There were four very long tables set up with the house flags hanging from the ceiling. The enchanted ceiling looked like a portal to the oblivion of space. Darien could see shooting stars flying across the room. The other first years looked amazed. "Whoa, that's cool." He heard Lionel say. Darien looked at him with a smile. "It's not real. It's only a enchantment to make it look like that. I read about it in my copy of Hogwarts, A History." He said. Lionel pretend not to hear him. The first years were lead right to the front of the room where the teachers tables were sitting.

Darien spotted his father sitting right next to a familiar man he recognized as Severus Snape. They were talking in low voices. Darien knew that Snape didn't quite like his father that much when they were students. But they learned to be more civil to each other. When the first years entered, Remus looked towards Darien and smiled, who smiled back. Snape had changed in the years. Darien remembered how he looked in the pictures. But now Snape had silver streaks at his temples in his hair, which he kept slick back now. Other wise he looked just about the same. Darien looked along the table. He could see Flitwick no longer taught Charms. He must have retired. There were a few new teachers Darien didn't recognize. And in the center was the very man, Darien remembered. Albus Dumbledore. He was smiling directly at him too. Darien smiled back. He remembered Dumbledore very well. The Headmaster of Hogwarts had paid visits to the Lupin Family plenty of times. So they knew each other already and well. And there was Hagrid sitting in his little spot. He was beaming at the new students.

Finally the first year students stopped. Right in front of them was the famous stool and the Sorting hat. It was just sitting there still as anything. Darien felt a slight nervous shiver shoot up his spine. He wasn't really sure what house he would be in. He didn't forget whose wand he had. He wondered if Dumbledore knew. But then again, most likely he did. Dumbledore never missed a thing. Plus it was more likely Remus told him. The only thing Darien could do was hope that he wouldn't have to be in Slytherin. He glanced around like all the other first year students were doing. There were the Ghosts all over. Darien recognized a few. But his eyes caught one in particular. It was a man hovering far in the corner right behind the teachers. Darien wondered if the teachers knew about him. He even wondered if the ghosts were even suppose to be there.

The ghost, like all ghosts, was transparent. He was wearing a hooded cloak and medieval looking cloths. His face thin and he had a short goatee on the end of his chin. A very unhappy look on his face. He was just floating there with his arms folded across his chest. He wore old fashioned boots. His eyes were empty and hard. They were looking over the Slytherin table though. He didn't look very pleased though. But as if he felt Darien's eyes on him, he turned his head slowly and looked right back at him. His mouth parted as if surprised that someone was looking at him. Darien tilted his head trying to figure out who this ghost was. But his attention went to the Sorting hat when he heard one of the girls behind him gasp. The Sorting Hat finally began to move and broke out into a gloomy sounding song.

_"A thousand years ago or more I was new_

_The sun was shining the skies were blue_

_Even though the founders were only four._

_No one knew that there was just one more._

_One who brought nothing but chaos_

_Tricking one of the four, to make him lost._

_Making him believe that he was the top one, _

_that he should be serious and not fun._

_Put me on your head and you will see,_

_what house that you would in be._

_You may be one of the Gryffindors, _

_brave hearts and always open doors._

_Bold, noble and true like lions they are._

_Shining like a brand new star._

_You may be one of the Hufflepuff kind_

_true, patient, using mostly their hearts and not mind._

_Sweet tempered, hard working and loyal._

_Never afraid of the chaotic toil._

_You may have a Ravenclaws wits._

_Using wisdom, cleverness and never have fits._

_Intelligence is their strongest strength._

_Their mind will keep their long length. _

_Perhaps you are in Slytherin, the cunning._

_Only the pure blood they chose and not the shunning._

_Loving only those of great ambition and power_

_Making a few others just afraid and cower._

_Even though they shared the same dreams, wishes and hopes._

_One of them wanted to be every thing and would try to cope,_

_He followed the wrong person's advice,_

_and because of that, the four friends put their friendship on ice._

_How could everything just go so wrong?_

_This is my darkest and gloomiest song._

_I was there to see it happen so I can tell, _

_of how the pure one of the four fell._

_The Hogwarts Founders worked in harmony for several years_

_Until the discord crept up on them bringing them their fears._

_The Fifth unknown had tricked the pure one to make him believe,_

_that the others are plotting against him, that he is the one they will deceive._

_After many fights with Gryffindor, Slytherin had decided to depart,_

_ignoring the pleas of the three, he left them with a broken heart._

_In the future years, his spirit still wanders, hoping to find the truth,_

_of how he had fallen so far down and how he get back to his roots._

_His spirit is here now, watching for the one who he despised, _

_the one who made him in the night cried._

_He will warn the chosen with dreams of fright,_

_to help him fight the shadow who hated the light._

_He wishes to be once again with the three of his friends,_

_he wants to make his hatred and greed end._

_For if the four houses do not reunite we will crumble within,_

_I have told you, warned you before, but now let the sorting begin."_

There was a murmuring in the whole room. Darien didn't understand. And apparently neither did the teachers. They were all looking around at each other. Some were whispering to each other. Remus and Snape had looked at each other confusion written on their faces. Snape then just frowned and shrugged before turning his attention back to the students. McGonagall unrolled the scroll and they began. "Anderson, Amanda!" was the first. They continued on through the A names. Then moved into the B names. It was Lionel's turn. He went over and sat on the stool. Darien watched with interest. He wanted to know what house his fried would be in. But only ten seconds passed since he put the hat on it called out, "Gryffindor!" The Gryffindors all exploded in cheers.

"Boyd, Leoni!" McGonagall called. Leoni pushed past Darien and Rex to get up the Hat. She sat down and put the hat on. Ten seconds later, "Ravenclaw!" The hat cried out. As soon it called that out, there was a big whoop from the Gryffindor table proving that Lionel was happy that his sister wouldn't be in the same house as him. Everyone laughed as Leoni shot him a look but was smiling. "Shut up, Lionel!" She shot. Everyone laughed. They went on. It was soon Sam's turn. It only took fifteen seconds for her. She was sorted into Gryffindor. Everyone was clapping.

Darien listened to more sorting. But his eyes wandered right back to the ghost in the corner. The ghost was watching but he felt Darien's eyes on him again and looked at him. They just looked right at each other. Eyes just staring into each others. There was just something about that ghost that interested Darien. He didn't understand it. What was so interesting about that ghost? Darien wasn't sure. He couldn't really take his eyes off the ghost. That is until he heard McGonagall call out his name. His attention went to her and he hurried up. He glanced at Remus before sitting down. Remus held up a hand low enough for Darien to see. He was crossing his fingers. Darien couldn't help but smile before he sat down and the hat was placed on his head. At first there was only silence but then a voice entered his head.

_"Well, you have a very interesting mind there, Darien." _He heard. _"I see a very good mind in your noggin. Your intelligence comes from your parents no doubt about that. You have strange amount of courage. I've only seen this much in Harry Potter's head when I sorted him. You match his courage. You have a big heart too. Yes, yes, you do. You would do very well in Ravenclaw because of your intelligence. But you would also do well in Hufflepuff because of your loyalty to others. But your bravery would match a Gryffindors. You are bold I can see that." _Darien listened to the hat. 'What house would I be in though?' He thought to the hat.

_Hmm. That's the thing, Young Lupin. There is two houses that I am thinking of. Gryffindor and Slytherin. Slytherin because you have a dark heritage that has not yet developed. But it is not anything to be worried about. You will learn about that in time. There is something though there. You have a strange power that is rare, more rare than the power Harry Potter had possessed. This power has never been used before. Not since one of the founders._

Darien shifted his weight feeling uncomfortable. _"Just sort him, hat. The students are giving you both a strange look now." _There was a new voice from his left. He turned his head a little but couldn't see anything because the hat was covering his eyes. _I'm getting there, Master Slytherin._ Darien's heart would have just stopped. Did he just hear right? _Ah, yes. You will be in, _"Gryffindor!" It finally yelled out.

The hat was taken off his head and Darien was allowed to see the other students, except the Slytherins of course. They were all cheering, Darien climbed off and went to sit next to Lionel who was grinning. "Man, that was sure a long sorting." He said patting Darien on the back. Darien looked at him. "Huh? How long was I sitting there?" He asked. Sam leaned over the table a little. "You were sitting there for five whole minutes." She said. Darien's jaw fell. "Really?" He asked. A third sitting close by nodded. "Yeah. The Sorting Hat's never done that before. The longest sorting there had been was only a minute in a half and that was a long time ago. But you've broke the record." he said. Darien rubbed his head. "Whoa." He said. Lionel nodded. "McGonagall looked like she was going to take off the hat and ask you what was going on but Dumbledore waved his hand at her telling her to just leave it." He said. Darien shook his head. "Weird." He said. His attention went back to the front.

It was Rex's turn. He looked scared having to be up there all by himself as he sat down. His face was a little pale but it disappeared under the hat. After about a ten seconds, the hat yelled out, "Gryffindor!" Both Darien and Lionel let out shrill whistles and clapped hard. Grinning, Rex hurried over to them and sat next to Darien. They high five each other. They continued to watch the sorting. The next interesting sorting was "Parkinson, Hector!" It was one of the bullies from the train. The black haired one. He had become a Slytherin. More sorting. The other brute that had bullied Rex was "Russell, Ewart!" There were several laughs. That was the one of the most interesting names Darien had ever heard. The bully had too become a Slytherin. There were only a few students left. A few more made Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Ian Whitman, the rich boy brat was one of the last ones to be sorted. When his name was called, he only took two steps forward. The Hat didn't even touch his head when it yelled, "Slytherin!" That was very odd indeed.

Darien, Lionel and Rex looked at each other with no surprise. They watched the remaining two first years be sorted then the stool and hat was taken away. McGonagall joined the rest of the teachers. Dumbledore stood and made his little speech that he always did. He said the rules and the restrictions so on, so forth. Darien wasn't really paying attention. His eyes was back on the ghost in the corner. This time it was the ghost who had caught his attention because he could feel eyes on him. Darien couldn't help it by just stare right back at him. He didn't know what it was. But there was something about that ghost. He wondered if anyone else was looking at the ghosts. He turned his eyes over to Lionel. "Hey, Lionel." he whispered. Lionel looked at him. "Yeah?" He asked. Darien looked back at the ghost in the corner. "See that ghost? Who is that?" He asked. Lionel looked to where he was looking. His eyes squinted a little. "Where are you looking?" He asked. Darien looked at him then back at the ghost. "He's standing right behind the teachers' table." he whispered. Lionel looked before smirking. "Very funny, Darien. He must be invisible then. Because I don't see anyone there." he said. Darien looked at him. "You can't see him?" He asked. Lionel shook his head. "No." He said. Darien looked back. The ghost had vanished. The 11 year old narrowed his eyes in confusion. He shook his head and returned his gaze back to Dumbledore.

Finally they got to eat. The food was every where and it just made Darien's mouth water. He began to dig in. He was eating when he felt someone tap his shoulder. He looked up to see Remus. Remus leaned over him to whisper in his ear. "Hey, D. You alright?" He asked. Darien nodded as he dished himself some pudding. "Yeah, why?" He asked. Remus shrugged as he looked down. "You just seemed a little confused a second ago. What were you looking at?" He asked. Darien turned in his seat to look up at his dad. He shook his head. "Nothing. I was just thought I saw a ghost." He said smiling. Remus smiled and let out a small laugh looking around. "Yeah you do intend to see ghosts around here." He said. Darien nodded with a grin. "Anyway, come see me after dinner." Remus said. Darien nodded. He watched Remus walk back to the teachers table.

Darien finished his meal then chatted with some of the other Gryffindors. They were the most interesting people he had ever met. Some how the conversation got into wands. They were talking about good their wand was and it soon became a contest on who's wand was the best looking. "Hey, Darien. What about you? What's your wand made out of?" A fourth year Gryffindor by the name of Edward Diggory asked. Darien shrugged with a smile. "Bloodwood." He just said. Everyone stared at him. It made him feel a little uneasy with everyone just staring. "What?" he asked. "What in the hell is Bloodwood?" Sam asked. A fifth year girl held their finger up to her mouth. "Be careful, Sam. Professor McGonagall isn't too keen on cursing." She warned. Darien just shook his head. "Your guess is as good as mine. That's just what Ollivander told me. He said it was made out of Bloodwood and it contains Phoenix ash." He said. Lionel shrugged. "Aw, heck. So what. I just hope we're getting out of soon. I'm feeling bushwhacked and would like to get some sleep." He said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

As if Dumbledore had heard Lionel he stood up. "Let us all get some good sleep for classes start tomorrow. Prefects, please escort the first years to your houses." He said. Everyone started to get up. Darien was going to follow the prefects but paused when he remembered that his father wanted to speak to him. "Ugh." He moaned. Lionel and Rex looked at him. "What?" They both asked. "My dad wanted to say something to me before I went to bed." He said. Lionel grinned. "You know, I know this is something not very many people would say. But your lucky that your dad is a teacher this year." He said. Darien stared at him. "Why?" he asked. Lionel just grinned. "'Cause the Slytherins wouldn't dream of picking on you. They'll think if they tried, they'll lose points or get extra work." He said. Darien laughed and rolled his eyes at the same time. "Yeah right." He said. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked up to see Remus. Lionel and Rex looked at each other. "Uh, we'll just wait for you at the doors." He said. Darien nodded.

"Hey, I'm going to make this quick so you can join the first years. But I've informed Dumbledore about your wand. He says tomorrow he would like to take a look at it." Remus said in a soft tone for only Darien to hear. Darien looked a little uneasy. "It's not going to be bad is it?" He asked. Remus shook his head with a smile. "No. He's just interested in seeing it. He's the only one who knows about it. No other teachers. And he also wants you to tell no one about it's history. Just to make sure." He said. Darien nodded. "Okay." He told him. Remus patted his son on the back. "Get some sleep and see you in the morning for breakfast." He said to Darien. He turned to walk away but stopped. "Oh, by the way, D." He turned back around digging into his robe pockets. "Your mother and I bought this right after you got your letter. We thought you might want to keep record about going on's this year." He said holding out a small hardcover book. Darien took it and looked at the golden writing on the spine. It was a journal. Darien grinned at Remus. "Thanks, dad." He told him. Remus nodded. "You need anything don't be afraid to ask. Sirius would be happy to help out too, you know." He said. Darien nodded before turning and running after the other first years.

"He's really growing up fast isn't he, Moony?" Remus heard his best friend behind him. Remus turned around with a smile. "Yes, Padfoot. He has." He told his friend. Sirius was still looking after Darien before turning his eyes onto Remus. He frowned. "Full moon's coming up. You sure your going to be alright?" He asked. Remus rose his eyebrows and shrugged. "Don't remind me. Yes. I've done quite well in the past. Thanks to Xavier and his clan. Please remembering Hermione's face helps. It's a good thing they built that new shack out in the Dark forest." He said. Sirius nodded. "Yes. It is. Anyway, let's sit down and catch up sometime." He said with a smile. Remus smiled and nodded. "We will some time. But you better start patrolling the halls now that you're the caretaker." He said. Sirius grinned. "Yes, Professor Lupin." He said giving him a salute. They parted ways.

A/N: How'd I do on the Sorting Hat's song? It took me a few days just trying to get it right but I think it's fine. Just let me know what you think about it by reviewing.


	5. Chapter 4

A/N: I'm sorry the Sorting hat's song was choppy. I swear it was my computer's fault for that. Any way in this chapter some serious things are going to happen. Also Remy's first class in this chapter. That rich boy brat, Whitman is going to look kind of stupid in this chapter.

Chapter 4.

He was again in the oblivious darkness. Why did it have to be dark all the time. Why did he have to dream the same dream over and over? It was just a little different this time. Darien was standing in the light of the full moon. He felt a little different. He looked himself over. He was a wolf. "What is happening to me?" He asked himself with worry. He smelled something different. There was someone there with him. It was the same someone as always.

The black robed figure was standing outside the circle again. Pacing around it. Darien kept his multicolored eyes. "Your finally here. Good. Soon you'll be mine." The hiss of a laugh echoed all around him. Darien shivered as he listened to the voice. "Who are you? Why do you keep bothering me?" His voice trembled as he asked the question. The robed figure laughed wickedly. "I am no one to be trifled with, Darien. When I want something, I get it. Just as I did a thousand years ago." He said. Darien turned in circle just trying to keep his eyes on the figure. He was really confused and scared. "Just leave me alone!" He growled fearfully. The figure stopped and turned his red eyes on the boy. He stepped closer sneering. "I've already told you. You will be mine." He laughed. He reached forward with a blinking speed and grabbed Darien by the throat.

Darien gasped and shot up in his bed. He was back in the dorm room he shared with Lionel, Rex and another boy named Paul Henderson. It was still very dark outside. The light of the moon shone through the window reflecting half of Darien's body. He had cold beads of sweat rolling down his face. His heart as always was pounding against his chest and hard. Darien sighed and plopped back on his pillow. He grabbed an extra one and covered his face with it.

He walked into the Great hall for breakfast with Lionel and Rex. They were talking about what classes they were going to take. Darien knew that they were getting their schedule that morning while at breakfast. He had to remind them though because they acted like they weren't sure. The minute Darien walked in he felt someone pushed him roughly as they tried to get past him. He bumped into Rex, knocking the poor kid down. "Hey!" Lionel growled at the offender. It was that rich boy brat, Ian Whitman. Whitman sneered. "Why don't you get out of the way, daddy's little boy?" He taunted Darien.

Lionel growled and was going to snap back but Darien poked him. "Don't pay him any attention, Lionel. He's just so thick." He warned helping Rex up. Rex glared after Whitman as Lionel did. The three of them went to sit down. "What is his problem?" Lionel growled still glaring at Whitman. Sam sat down from across the table. "It's the fact that Darien's dad is the DADA teacher. I heard some of the students talking about it already." She said sitting down. Lionel gave her a look. "Who asked you?" He grumbled. Sam sent him a glare. "Who were you asking?" She shot back. Lionel opened his mouth to say something but Darien poked him again. "Don't start. Your reminding me of my mom and Uncle Ron." He said. Rex looked at him. "You mean Ron Weasley, don't you? I didn't know he was your uncle." He said. Darien lazily shrugged. "Well, he's not technically. He's one of my mom's friends, even if she is way older than him. I've just known him all my life so I just call him my uncle. That goes for Harry Potter too." He said. They all nodded.

"Anyway, I've already told you. This year, my dad is just Professor Lupin to me. We talked about it before I even came to Hogwarts." Darien said biting into a roll. Sam shook her head. "Tell that to Ian Whitman." She said. Lionel rolled his eyes. "Oh like he's gonna listen." He said sarcastically. Sam shot him a look again. "What is your problem?" She growled. Lionel sneered at her. "Well it's the fact that your friends with my sister. Any friends of hers is not a friend of mine." Sam eyed him dangerously. "You can take that attitude of yours and stuff it up your……"

"Okay!" Rex quickly cut her off. "Can you hand me that little bowl of jelly, Sam?" He asked trying to reach it. But because he was a little smaller than the table he had a hard time getting it.

Sam sighed but smiled. She pushed the bowl of strawberry jelly towards him. "Thanks." Rex said. Sam nodded and then shoveled a spoonful of honey oatmeal into her mouth trying to avoid Lionel. Darien was starting to eat when a shadow fell over him. He didn't even need to look up to know who it was. He could just tell. "Hi, Professor Snape. How are you this morning?" He asked stirring cream in his oatmeal. He looked up with a smile. Severus Snape didn't smile but his eyes twinkled with amusement. He just nodded merely and folded his hands together. "The Headmaster would like a word with you, Mr. Lupin." He said with no emotion in it. Darien nodded remembering what his father had said just last night. He looked at Lionel and Rex real quick. "Save my spot and Lionel?" he asked as he got up. Lionel just gave him a smile of innocence. "Yes?" he asked sweetly. "Don't touch my food." Lionel clicked his fingers giving a teasing disappointed look. Rex laughed with a few of the other Gryffindors who were listening.

Darien followed Snape close behind him. He was smirking remembering a small message that Hermione had asked him to deliver to Snape when he got the chance. "Oh, mom asked me to tell you something." Darien said. Snape just glanced over his shoulder at the 11 year old as he went to his seat. He rose his eyebrow looking only a tad bit interested in what Hermione wanted to say. "She told me to tell you, 'Hi, Snivally." Darien said with a grin. Snape just looked at him with annoyance. But turned his eyes on to the laughing Sirius who had heard what Darien said.

Some of the other teachers that heard laughed too. Darien approached the Headmaster, who was beaming at the kid. "Good morning, Darien. How was your first night?" Dumbledore asked. Darien shrugged. "Ah, can't complain." He said. Dumbledore smiled. "Good." He said with a nod. He looked towards Darin's pocket. "Your father told me something interesting about your wand. May I?" he asked. Darien nodded and pulled the black-red wand out. He held it out towards Dumbledore who took it carefully and examined it. After a few minutes, the Headmaster handed it back. "That is extraordinary. I have written Mr. Ollivander last night to ask him about the wand and he has told me what he has told you and your father." He said. Darien nodded as he glanced over his wand.

"It is particularly strange how this wand found its way to you. I wasn't really under the impression it still existed. But there it is. I must say that wand is strange." Dumbledore said. Darien's eyes lit up as he rolled them slightly. "Huh, no kidding." He added. Dumbledore just smiled. "Yes, I see you are as surprised as I am about receiving a wand like that. But I must say this, take caution with it. It's history may be a dark one but being your hands it will not repeat itself. Take care of it, Darien. And if anything unusual happens with it, please inform me. Just to be careful." He said. Darien nodded. "I will." He said. He turned and went back to his seat. "So, what did Dumbledore want?" Lionel asked as soon as Darien sat down. "Nothing. He just wanted to say hi. He's kind of a friend of the family." Darien half told the truth. They had finally gotten their schedules. The first class that they had was History of Magic. Which was a snore war, so Sam said. Professor Binns the only ghost teacher in the castle began the class by taking role and then went on telling the Gryffindors about what they were going to learn that year. Lionel kept Darien and Rex busy by giving them a small list of pranks they should pull on the rich boy brat, Whitman. Some of them were pretty good actually. 

The next class they went to happened to be the worst one. Darien knew it wasn't really a pleasant one after listening to all the things Hermione had told him about but now after going to the Potions class, he figured it out that what Hermione said wasn't a lie. Snape was quite strict about what went on in the class. And to make things worst, the Gryffindors had the class with Slytherin.

Darien hadn't even taken three steps into the room when he shoved forward, again knocking poor little Rex off his feet once again. "Get out of the way, Lupin! Your blocking the entrance to the class!" Whitman's voice laughed. Darien spun around looking outraged. "What is with you and shoving me!" He exclaimed. Whitman sneered as he pushed past him. "I don't like you." He simply said with his lapdogs right behind him. Lionel rolled his eyes as he and Darien picked Rex up off the ground. "Really? I couldn't tell." He said sarcastically. Darien glared towards Whitman as he and his two friends found their seats. "I don't like Nazis, either." Whitman said from over his seat. Darien jumped when Lionel shot to his feet sending his chair flying back and hitting the tables behind him. There were a few "oooohs" from the Slytherins. The Gryffindor students all glared at Whitman. "You better take that back, Whitman or I swear to god I will kick your ass!" Lionel yelled as Darien tried to hold him back. Whitman smirked at him. "I would love to see you try, Nazi." He sneered. Lionel growled and tried to push past Darien and now Rex.

"Sit down!" There came the order from Snape as he entered. He walked right up to the front of the class room and stood there. Everyone sat down in their seats. The Slytherins on one side while the Gryffindors were on the other. Lionel was glaring daggers towards Whitman as he found his seat again. There was a long silence in the room as everyone settled down. Snape took role out loud then tossed the list onto his desk. "As you all know, you are here to lean the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. There will be little foolish wand-waving here. Many of you will hardly believe this is magic." He paused looking them all over with cold and empty eyes.

"I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of simmering liquids in a hot cauldron, the delicate power of potions that could creep through human veins, bewitching minds, and ensnaring the senses." There was a long silence. Snape's cold eyes traveled from face to face. His eyes stopped on Darien and narrowed. "There are certain rules in this class that will be followed and if you don't follow them there will be consequences. Some of those rules includes silence while I speak or paying attention. But above all there will be no fighting in my class room." He said with a deadly hiss. His eyes shot to Lionel, who glowered. "Five points from Gryffindor for that threat, Mr. Boyd." Lionel's mouth tightened with anger but he bit his tongue to keep from saying anything. They all knew how Snape was. Darien felt a wave of outrage himself that Snape didn't say anything about the nasty name Whitman called Lionel. He had to grab a fistful of his robes to help control his anger. The first lesson that they were working on was on a potion to help remove warts. Snape went along the rows watching them all work on their potions.

They were dividing in pairs though. Darien and Lionel worked together while Rex worked with Sam, right next to their cauldron. Darien could hear Lionel muttering angrily as chopped up roots for their potion. Most likely he was pretending that the roots were either Snape or Whitman. "You better calm down or we'll never get this right." Darien whispered to him. Lionel still shaking from anger took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. It's just that…." He was saying. Darien shook his head. "I know. You don't need to say it. But I heard Snape can turn really, really nasty if you push it. Harry told me all about him." He whispered back. Lionel took another deep breath and nodded.

At the moment, Snape was criticizing another first year Gryffindor Darien knew as Bear Lockhart. The kid was looking very nervous and was trembling a little as Snape boar down on him with cruel eyes. "Did I say to add the wormwood before the mint leaves! No I did not!" Snape growled. Bear accidentally dropped his scalpel and bent down to get it. "My, my. We've had a accident prone lug before but you are far….." Snape was sneering. Suddenly at the front of the room a jar with something slimy looking exploded making everyone jump. Snape cut off his sentence before stomping over to investigate. All three Darien, Lionel and Rex looked at each other with confusion. "What in the world was that about?" Rex as they left the dungeons. Darien shook his head. "Don't know. But Snape wasn't too happy about it." He said. Lionel rolled his eyes. "I don't think that man has ever been happy. Just look at him. He acts as if some shoved something up his ass and he can't dig it out." He said. Darien and Rex sniggered at that. Sam had hurried up. "Was it any one of you though? Was anyone imagining something exploding?" She asked. Lionel gave her a look. "Why do you care?" He asked with annoyance. Sam ignored him. Darien just shook his head. "No. I was getting angry after listening to him but I wasn't imaging anything exploding." He said. Rex nodded. "Same here." He said. Lionel folded his arms and rolled his eyes. "Me either." He grumbled. Sam shook her head. "I wonder if it was one of the others." She thought outloud. Lionel waved his hands in the air, wildly. "So go ask one of them!" He exclaimed. Sam shot him a very annoyed look before joining another girl. 

Darien sighed. "Lionel, I know you don't like your sister very much but you really need to give Sam a break." He said. Lionel folded his arms. "Well, she has a rotten taste in friends." He grumbled. Rex looked up at the tall blonde. "What is it you hate about your sister?" He asked. Lionel sighed in exasperation. "She's just sooooo annoying! You try living with someone who giggles about their favorite actors or who's the hottest guy! She usually turns her new friends into another her. Leoni always fanaticizes about who she is so in love with. 'Oh, Orlando Bloom is so hot! He's gonna be my future husband!' Or how about 'Check out this guy's butt! It's so cute!' It just makes me want to gag!" Lionel had imitated his sister's voice pretty good. Both Darien and Rex just laughed.

They went to Transfiguration next. McGonagall was very strict but at least she wasn't as bad as Snape. She told the class the basics and then had everyone in the class take a pencil and turn it into a long worm. It wasn't really hard to do. At least for Darien. Darien was the only one to get it right. The others had a hard time. Rex's pencil was kind wriggling though as if it was a worm. Lionel's worm kept curling up when he poked it and when it did, it drew a long black line across the desk. Everyone laughed when it did that, except McGonagall of course.

The next class was the one was the one class Darien had been waiting for all day. Defense Against the Dark Arts class with Remus Lupin. They were all quite excited to see what Remus Lupin had to offer. The other Gryffindor students didn't seem to mind that Darien was the Professor's son. To their disgust though, Slytherin was in their class again. Darien and Rex had to keep their hold on Lionel so he wouldn't run up to the rich boy and slug him. Which took a lot because Lionel was stronger than he looked. They went into the classroom and found Remus at his desk looking things over. Sirius was there chatting with him. When the students entered, they both looked up and smiled. Darien couldn't help but grin seeing Sirius. He loved to see his troublemaking 'Uncle'. Sirius grinned back seeing him. "Hey, Dari! How's it going?" He called over. Darien shrugged as he took a seat with Lionel and Rex. "It's going." He said. Sirius looked at Remus. "Go ahead and start your class. I'll talk you to you later." He said leaving. He gave Darien and his friends a thumbs up and a wink as he passed them.

"Oh great. It's time for the father son thing to start." Darien heard Whitman whisper to the lugs beside him. The Slytherins sniggered while Darien fumed silently. Remus did hear that but he seemed to pretend not to. He just continued to look through what ever he was looking through. As soon as everyone had taken seat, Remus looked up and smiled at everyone. He moved around the large desk and sat on the corner. "Welcome to your first DADA class. I am your teacher, Professor Remus Lupin. We'll start by taking the role as like the other classes." He began to name everyone off. They all said here or rose their hand. Remus didn't even look up when he said Darien's name. They just acted casual.

"Now, who can tell me, why are we taking this class?" Remus asked looking around with a smile. Everyone had half expected to see Darien's hand go but it didn't. He just sat there looking relaxed smiling up at the teacher. There was a few coughs. Remus smiled even more. "I am here to teach you how to ward of the dark arts or how to recognize them. There will come a time where you will need to learn types of spells to defend yourself against," He looked at the ceiling and shook his head. "…..let's say this interesting creature for instance." He said waving his hand towards the ceiling. Everyone looked up and spotted something in the rafters. They weren't sure if it was real or just made out of stone. Darien recognized it as a gargoyle. But it was just sitting there.

"Or defend yourself from others who mean you harm." Remus said nodding. He stood and began to walk down the middle. "There will come a time you might run into a cursed item such as a shrunken heads. There are dark arts no matter where you go. You must know what they are and what they can do. And above all, how to recognize them." He spoke out. Darien caught sight of Whitman whispering to Hector Parkinson and Ewart Russell. He had a feeling they were planning on a way to disrupt the class. It just made his blood boil thinking about them try to make his dad look like a fool. But unfortunately for them, Remus was aware of their intentions. "Mr. Ian Whitman." He spoke out without turning around and kept walking. Whitman and his two goons jumped a little and looked back at Remus. Some of the Gryffindors sniggered. "Would you kindly please stand up?" Remus said. Whitman slowly did so. 

"Good. Now go to the front of the class." Remus instructed turning around and walking right back up to the front. Whitman looked around at the other Slytherins who shrugged. He slowly did what he was told. Remus didn't say anything until he was standing right next to Whitman. He looked right at him. "Name one very powerful creature that can use wandless magic." He said. Ian Whitman looked puzzled. "Huh?" He asked. There were a few laughs from the other students. Remus just nodded. "Go ahead. Name one creature that uses magic to defend themselves but does not use wands." He said folding his hands behind his back. Whitman squinted his eyes with confusion. "Uh…..centaur." He suggested. Remus nodded cocking an eyebrow. "Yes, centaurs do use magic but not wands." He turned to look at a closed door.

"Now behind that door is a very powerful creature who uses magic. So powerful, that you would be hovering high above our heads just by the snap of their fingers. You will be facing this creature by yourself. So be ready." He said stepping back. Whitman's face went as pale as his hair. He quickly grabbed his wand and stood ready looking wild eyed at the closed door. The Gryffindors all looked on with amusement and wonder. Darien stole a look towards his father who winked at him and smirked. "On the count of three, that door will open and that powerful creature will come walking in." Remus announced. Whitman looked extremely nervous about what was going to happen. His hand shaking a little from the anxiety.

"One." Remus counted down. Everyone that was still sitting down leaned forward, their eyes wide. The Gryffindors all grinning. "Two." Whitman let out a small whimper of nervousness, making Darien and his friends smirk. "Three!" The door sprang open.

Every single person in that stared at what was standing in the door way. Their jaws all fell seeing what it was. Some looked very confused. At the door stood…………Dobby the house elf. He was just standing there with a big grin on his face. He was wearing a red sweater with green baggy pants for toddlers. A big sombrero covered most of his head, which he kept pushing it up. "Hello." Dobby squeaked. The room burst with laughter, mostly from the Gryffindors, some from the Slytherins. Whitman lowered his wand slightly looking very confused, annoyed and unamused. That is until Dobby lifted his thin hand and snapped his very thin fingers.

Suddenly Whitman was lifted into the air with a small hover charm. He panicked a little crying out as he dropped his wand. His arms waving as if he was trying to fly. "What the! Put me down!" he cried out. Everyone in the room was laughing, even the Slytherins. Whitman hovered higher and higher. Dobby did a little waggle with his finger and Whitman turned over. He looked a little terrified but more outraged. "Now the thing about house elves is, they never use their magic to harm anyone. They use them to help. And they have 100 percent control on their powers. You can't really distract them from anything. You could be playing very loud music or yelling at Dobby and he wouldn't ever drop Mr. Whitman." Remus said staring up at Whitman. He looked over at the house elf. "Dobby, you can lower Mr. Whitman now." He said. Dobby gave a bow and then clicked his fingers again. Whitman fell slowly, landing softly on the ground with no harm. "You may sit down now." Remus told him. Whitman snatched his wand and did. He was still pale but he had pink patches from embarrassment.

"Now your all probably wondering what did I mean by house elves being very powerful. Oh, believe me. House elves could more than just hover charms. They could do a lot more than that." Remus said now pacing. Dobby just stood there with his sombrero falling over his eyes again. He pushed up still smiling brightly. "They could harm someone if their master ordered them to. Is that right, Dobby?" Remus asked looking at the house elf. Dobby's ears fell as a look came on his face and he frowned. "Oh, yes, Master Lupin. But we house elves don't like to! Nope!" he squeaked. Remus nodded. "But they do love to help people." He said. Dobby grinned again and nodded rapidly.

"Thank you, Dobby. That will be all." Remus said smiling. Dobby turned to leave but stopped. He turned back smiling. "Would the masters and mistresses like anything while in class? Dobby would not mind getting anything." He said grinning. Everyone laughed. "No thank you, Dobby. Thank you for asking though." Remus laughed. Dobby scurried out while humming, terribly though, 'She'll Be Coming Around The Mountain'. Everyone was still laughing as he left closing the door behind him. Darien looked at his father with a smile, who returned it.

Defense Against the Dark Arts had become a favorite class. The students were so interested in what they would be learning. They were just happy that there was a teacher with a sense of humor around there. Remus joked with them even though the class was suppose to be a serious one. Half of the Slytherins liked him while the other half made complaints. But no one really listened to them. Everyone was happy with Remus Lupin and they didn't say anything against him. A few times Whitman or some of the Slytherins he hung out with said something bad about Darien and Remus Lupin but every time someone would tell them to shut it. They all knew that Remus was just treating his son just like he would with the others. In class, they acted as if they weren't even related. But outside they did. No one cared that Darien's father was a Professor. And if they did, the people who didn't care would tell the ones complaining to shut it.

However, that wasn't the case for Darien. He wasn't worried about what the other students said about him or his dad. If it didn't bother Remus it didn't bother him. He was just worried about the dreams that he would dream about at night, every night. And the dreams were getting worst. He was now dreaming about being in the dungeons. This time he was running as fast as he could from something that was chasing him. And as always he would wake up sweating badly and his heart pounding hard. And a few times he cried out when woke up. But because of all three, Lionel, Rex and Paul being heavy sleepers they never woke up. Darien wondered what his dreams meant. He was even more confused as before. It was like being at Hogwarts, his dreams seemed to get more and more real. Sometimes he woke up feeling a hot breath on his neck, scaring the hell out of him. He had almost forgot about that one ghost from the very first day. The reason why he almost forgot about it was because he had only seen it once. Until the very first day of fall, three weeks since Darien first came to Hogwarts. 

He was on his way with Lionel and Rex towards Herbology. Lionel was very annoyed because he had just got into another fight with Sam and even Leoni. Both of the girls pretty much ganged up on him to lecture him for the behavior of treating Sam. "You have to admit it, Lionel. You do deserve it. You shouldn't be so mean to Sam even if she is your sister's best friend." Rex said. Lionel gave a small annoyed growl. "Oh, don't you start, shorty." He said. Rex gave him a dark look. "Hey! I'm not that short!" he cried out offended. Darien stopped in his tracks making them bump into his shoulders. "Hey, Darien! What gives?" Lionel asked. Darien didn't answer. His eyes straight ahead looking towards the top of a wall.

There standing on it was that one ghost. He was just standing there with his arms folded. He was glaring at a stone gargoyle. By the looks of it, he didn't like gargoyles that much. How Darien could tell was because the ghost swung a fist trying to hit it but his fist went right through it. "Darien? Heeeellooooo?" Lionel asked now waving a hand in front of his face. Darien blinked at looked over at him. "What?" He asked. Rex stared at him. "What are you looking at?" he asked. Darien looked back up on the wall. The ghost was still there swinging at the gargoyle. "Hey, Lionel. Remember that ghost I told you about during the opening feast? Well look up there on the wall by that gargoyle. He's right there." He said pointing.

Both Lionel and Rex looked up on the wall. Their eyes squinted. "Where?" Lionel asked. Darien looked at him wide eyed. "Your telling me you can't see him? He's right there trying to punch that gargoyle." He said. Lionel turned his eyes to look at Darien. "Darien, you feeling okay?" He asked. Darien looked back at the ghost. "I'm fine. But he's right there." He said pointing. The other two Gryffindors looked again before shaking their heads. "Darien, there's nothing there. We don't see anything." Rex said. Darien looked at them. "But he's there." He swore. Lionel scratched the back of his neck. "Well, if he's there, why do you see him and not us? I mean, we usually can see the ghosts." He said. Darien looked back at the ghost but jumped a little seeing him coming towards them. "Uh, let's go to class now. He's kind of glaring at us." He said hurrying towards the greenhouses. Lionel and Rex looked at each other before hurrying after him.

That night Darien was doing his homework, an essay for Professor Binns on the history of Merlin. It was getting a little late. Lionel, Rex and Paul had gone to sleep already. It was sure quiet, unless you could count Lionel's snores. He snored pretty loud for his age. And Paul usually talked in his sleep. Darien started to laugh when he heard Paul say something about chocolate frogs. He was starting to feel a little drowsy so he figured he would have to finish the essay in the morning. Yawning, Darien placed his essay and quill on the bedside table and pulled the covers over him. He drifted of back into the darkness of dreams.

He was running again in the dungeons. A long dark corridor with snake statues on the sides. The ground was wet with water making it just a little slippery under his sneakers. Darien could feel the cold sweat beads rolling down his face as he run. His heart was pounding. He could hear wicked laughter behind him. The figure he usually dreamed about was taunting him. "Run, run as fast as you can. You can't hide from me, I'm the Shadow man." He heard.

Darien felt his legs growing heavier as he ran. He looked down as he began to slow and noticed that he had ran into black tar. He was starting to sink. "Ah! No!" Darien cried out. He was trying to wad through the tar, trying to get away from the growing darkness that was rapidly coming towards him. Darien looked over his shoulder as he ran through the thick black substance. The shadows in the dungeon was growing darker and colder. He could see his breath now. "You can't get away, Darien." The shadows seemed to say. The 11 year old let out a cry and tried to go faster but the tar around his body seemed to be drying up. He couldn't move. It was tightening around his chest making it hard to breath. He could feel his body becoming colder.

He turned trying to push his way through the drying tar only to stop. There were two boots right in front of his face. Darien looked up and spotted the ghost he only saw and no one else. The ghost was glaring towards the darkness, no scowling. Darien could see a deep hatred in his eyes. The ghost didn't look like a ghost anymore. He looked like he alive. His cloths were mostly green and silver. The symbol of Slytherin was on his cloak. Those hateful eyes lowered looking Darien right in the eye. "Wake up, boy. Wake up now!" He barked in a deep and hissy like voice. It wasn't like the original one but it wasn't very nice either. _"Darien! Wake up!" _Darien heard the one voice he hadn't heard for many weeks. Draco Malfoy's voice.

A/N: Okay, I know you guys are not going to like me very much in the next chapter. Darien comes very close to something he really don't want to. What is happening right now and in the next chapter, just think of this way. It gets really cold, you start feeling things like your never going to be happy again and it does things to you that might make you go insane. Take a wild guess what is right in Darien's face when he wakes up.


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: I'm sorry for leaving you all hanging there. This will be a very interesting chapter for you all.

Chapter 5.

His eyes shot open as he felt the chill fall over him. It was so cold yet it wasn't like a winter's day or anything. It was colder. And Darien felt like he wouldn't ever be happy again. It was like all the happiness or cheerfulness had been sucked out of him. Yet he wasn't ready for what was hovering over him. Darien felt a scream forming in his chest but it was stuck. It was refusing to come out. The creature was coming towards him, sucking the air around him and in him. He could feel the dreadful feelings coming over him. The black robed phantom he recognized in books and the eerie feelings he was told about from Harry Potter. The creature above him, he knew was called a Dementor. _"Scream, Darien! Wake the others now!" _He heard the voice. "AAAAAHHHHH!" Darien found his voice finally. It was like someone had taken over him and made him scream. The Dementor hovered back a little as if startled that its victim started screaming but it gave its own little scream and grabbed Darien by the neck pulling him upward towards the hood. 

"What the hell!" Darien heard Lionel. Then a fluffy pillow came flying in their direction and hitting the Dementor in the head. The Dementor released Darien out of shock and turned a little to see what was interrupting its meal. Lionel, Rex and Paul had all woke up to Darien's screaming but their own fear paralyzed them all. Darien scampered to get away from the Dementor with the little strength he had left, not getting too far because of the headboard. The Dementor turned back towards him and started to advance again when suddenly, "Expecto Patronum!"

A silver bright light shot into the room and hit the Dementor hard sending it flying back a little. It let out a screech and dove right out the open window, smashing the glass a little as it flew off into the night. The lights immediately turned on and in came several students. "What's going on!" The Prefect, Zachary Yearsley exclaimed. Everyone stumbled in, including girls. Lionel staggered out of bed and ran over to Darien who was staring forward with a shock ridden look on his face. "It was a Dementor!" Paul yelled. There were gasps and screams. "Someone! Go get McGonagall! Go get Dumbledore, quick!" Yearsley yelled. A sixth year Gryffindor with a few others dashed out. Lionel grabbed Darien's shoulder. "Darien! Are you alright!" he exclaimed. Darien didn't answer. He was just shaking violently from fear and shock.

Not three minutes later, Sirius came shoving his way in. "Darien!" He yelled hurrying towards his bed. Lionel quickly jumped back to let the caretaker take over. Sirius grabbed Darien's shoulders and looked at him with wide eyes. Darien seemed to snap out of it hearing Sirius' voice. He blinked and looked at him. "Uncle Sirius!" he cried out still shaking. Sirius looked him over. "What happened!" He asked looking very pale. Darien trembled as he threw his arms around his 'uncle'. He didn't answer right away. "It was a Dementor, Mr. Black!" Rex squeaked. Sirius gave a choke as his head spun around to look at Rex. "A what!" He exclaimed. His face going paler, his eyes more wild. "Get out of the way! Dumbledore coming through!" Someone yelled. The Gryffindor students quickly formed a path to let Dumbledore and McGonagall in. The two hurried forward seeing the state of Darien. "What happened!" Dumbledore asked. Sirius looked up at him. "Rex over there just told me there was a Dementor in here, Albus!" He said. McGonagall gasped covering her mouth. Dumbledore's twinkling eyes were no longer twinkling. They were full of fear and surprise. "Darien……" he was saying. Sirius shook his head, tightening his grip on the shaking boy. "No. He's alright. Just in shock." He said. 

Dumbledore nodded. "Sirius, I need you to go get Remus." He said. Sirius opened his mouth to object. "But…." He barely got out. Dumbledore shook his head holding up a hand. "Remus must be informed of what happened right now, Sirius. You are the only one outside from myself that knows the password to his quarters." He said. Sirius nodded quickly trying to pull away but Darien wouldn't let go. "Dari, I need to go get your father now. Let go." He said softly. Darien almost didn't hear him but he pried himself off of Sirius and let him rush out of the room. Lionel and Rex quickly hurried over to help keep their friend calm. Dumbledore strode over and bent down beside the bed. "Darien?" He asked. Darien looked up still shaking. "What happened?" The Headmaster asked calmly. His voice seemed to help soothe Darien's nerves. He shook his head breathing as calmly as he could.

"I-I d-d-don't know. I j-just woke up and it…..it was there." He stammered. Dumbledore nodded slowly. "That's all?" He asked. Darien quickly touched his neck. "It…..it grabbed me. I could f-feel it's hand around my neck. It….." He couldn't finish that sentence. Just the thought of seeing such a creature like that made him shudder and tightly close his eyes. Dumbledore looked towards the door at all the staring students. Horrified looks on each of their faces. "Please, everyone, either go back to bed or stay in the common room. Minerva?" He asked looking at McGonagall. McGonagall quickly stepped forward. "Wake up all the teachers and alert them now. We must search the entire castle for any Dementors that may be inside. Every house must be searched." He said. Minerva nodded and hurried out.

As soon as she left, Remus and Sirius ran back in. "Darien!" Remus gasped hurrying forward. Darien looked up quickly just in time to see his father run forward and wrap his arms around him and tightly. "Darien, are you alright!" Remus asked. Darien hugged Remus back tightly not answering. He could feel his father shaking just as bad as he was. Everyone still in the room watched the two Lupins. The entire castle was being searched. Every single person in the castle was awake and after hearing that a student had been attacked, no one could go back to sleep. Not even the Slytherin house, which was being searched by Snape and a few others.

It took an hour before calming Darien down. Enough to hear what he had to say what happened. He told them that he was asleep and had felt a very cold chill in the air which had awaken him. "It was just right there above me. I remembered what it was hearing stories about those from dad and mom. Not to mention Harry. They always told me how horrible those things were." Darien said drinking some hot chocolate. Dumbledore nodded for him to go on. "I couldn't scream. I was too afraid to. But when I did, it felt like someone had taken over me and made me scream. I'm not really sure what happened. I sort of went into shock after I did woke Lionel, Rex and Paul." He said sipping the chocolate. Lionel nodded with the other two. Dumbledore turned his eyes on to Rex. "What did you see?" he asked. Rex shook his head. "It was too dark. I couldn't really see anything but something black hovering over Darien. I saw Lionel throw his pillow at it to distract it." He said nodding towards Lionel. Lionel nodded. "It was the only thing I could do. At least I could think of. I just saw it right there and my instincts took over. I just grabbed my pillow and threw it with all my strength." He said. Dumbledore nodded. 

"You did well, Lionel." He said. Sirius was pacing in the room. "But how did it get in?" He asked seriously. Darien's eyes lit up and he looked at the window. It was slightly opened. "I think I forgot to close the window. It must have got in that way." He said. Remus let out a long shaky sigh. He ran his hand through his hair. His eyes lit up though looking back at Lionel. "You said you threw your pillow at it? That is what scared it off?" He asked. All four Gryffindor boys looked at each other. "No…actually we heard a voice. Something silver scared it off." Paul announced. The adults looked at each other. "The Patronus." They all said. Everyone stood and made their way out of the room. Remus made Darien go with.

Every single Gryffindor student was in the common room sitting around the fire. They all looked up when the adults and four Gryffindor boys entered. Dumbledore looked each one over before breathing in deeply. "Tonight, a Dementor had some how gotten into the Gryffindor house. We are aware of how. Someone had left a window open and it came through. It nearly destroyed a life, Darien Lupin's life to be exact." He said now pacing and looking each student over.

"Now, someone in this room performed the right spell to ward the Dementor off, a Patronus charm. I must know who used that spell so that our Professor, Remus Lupin, will know who saved his son's life." He said. No one spoke. Everyone looked at another with confusion. They too wanted to know who did it. Dumbledore looked at each. "Who was the first person in that room when you heard the screaming?" He asked. The Prefect, Zack Yearsley stepped forward. "I was, sir. But I didn't do the Patronus. There was no one else in that room but the four boys." He said. There were a few whispers. Dumbledore eyed the Prefect carefully. "Your sure?" He asked. Zack nodded. He started forward towards the nearest table. "But I did pick this up in the door way. I almost stepped on it." He said picking something long and thin from the table. He held it up. Darien's eyes grew wide. "That's my wand!" he said with surprise. Everyone looked at him. Dumbledore took the wand from Zack and looked it over before looking at Darien. He took out his own wand and waved it over Darien's. Nothing happened. Dumbledore nodded as if he understood. He handed Darien the wand.

"Darien, please ask your wand what spell it last used." He said. Everyone stared. Darien blinked. "Huh?" He asked with surprise. Dumbledore nodded. "Just ask it. It will not respond to me." He said. Darien blinked and shook his head. He looked at his wand and was going to say something but something silver sparked out of the tip. Remus and Sirius looked right at each other with bewilderment. Dumbledore just nodded. "Who ever has conjured up the Patronus, used your wand, Darien." He shook his head. "But I'm afraid to say, it must have been a very powerful wizard, more powerful than I. Your wand is not the type of wand that responds to others. It will only listen to you. Either you, yourself, conjured up the Patronus or the wand did it, itself." The Headmaster said. Darien just stared unblinking.

No one slept that night. The castle was still being searched. They had adults in every house just to make sure that everything was in order. Remus wouldn't leave Darien's side that night. He just couldn't. Everyone had stayed up until Dawn. Dumbledore had decided to cancel classes that day so everyone could get some more rest. There were so many rumors flying around already though. Some were saying someone let the Dementor in as a prank. But of course that was shoved aside. "If someone let a Dementor in as a joke, it was a real sick joke." Someone had said.Darien had told Remus what happened again this time telling him all the details. How he heard Draco Malfoy's voice in his dreams. Remus and Sirius was astounded. They didn't know if it was just a dream or if that was what Darien had heard. "Dad, that Dementor that came after me…..I think it's the one that has Draco's soul. I could feel him close by. I could almost hear him in that room. I knew it was Draco. I heard his voice." Darien said as he sat in the common room. Remus stared at the ground as he listened. His eyes rose meeting his son's multicolored ones. "Are you sure it wasn't just a dream?" He asked. Darien shook his head. "No. I've talked to Draco before. I knew it was him." He said. Sirius stared at him. "You have?" He asked. Darien sighed rolling his head back. "It's kind of hard to explain, Sirius. And I'm kind of tired to explain it right now." He said. Remus nodded patting Darien's shoulder. "You should get some sleep. You've been up ever since it happened." He said. Darien yawned as he climbed off the couch. "Okay." He said going towards the boy's dorms. Remus and Sirius stood watching him. 

As soon as Darien was gone, the two friends looked at each other. "Sirius, I'm really worried about Darien. This is the most strange thing I have ever heard." He said. Sirius sighed running his hand through his long black hair. "No kidding. You think he's just making it up or do you think he's telling the truth?" He asked. Remus folded his arms. "Sirius, I know my son way too well. He wouldn't just make something up like that. I know he's got a very wild imagination but how could he make something up like that?" he asked. Sirius nodded now rubbing his eyes. "I know, Remus. It's just its sort of hard to believe that he actually talked to Draco when Draco hasn't spoke for twelve years. He's lost his soul, Remus. How could Darien talk to someone who lost their soul to a Dementor?" he asked.  
Remus shook his head as he covered his face with both hands and plopped right back into the couch. "I don't know, Sirius. And that's what scares me even more." He said. Sirius sat next to his friend. "What are you going to tell Swiftstar?" He asked. Remus' hands fell as a look of horror was on his face. "Oh, shit. I haven't even done that yet. And hearing about this, she's going to kill me." He said. Sirius laughed nervously.

Darien was sleeping on his bed again. His dreams were haunting him. He was dreaming about the dungeons once more. Dementors were chasing him this time including the darkness. He jolted awake when he came face to face with another one. His face wet again from sweat and his bangs clinging to his forehead. "Hey. You alright?" He heard. Darien turned his head and spotted Rex sitting on his bed. He let out a long sigh lying back down and covered his face. "It's just nightmares." He said. Rex shrugged looking back down at his collection of chocolate frog cards. "Wouldn't blame you. Not after what happened last night." He said. Darien propped himself up with his elbows. "It's not just the Dementors, Rex." He said. Rex looked up again.

"It's hard to explain. I've been having these dreams ever since my eleventh birthday. And that was before I came to Hogwarts." Darien said. Rex's eyes squinted before he stood and went over to Darien's bed. Darien swung his feet to the floor to let Rex sit down. "I'm always in the dark but I'm not alone. There's always someone else there. I can't see them only their red eyes. Glaring into mine." He said running his hand through his hair. Rex stared at him. "It started off just standing in the middle of a beam of light. The full moon right above me. The guy who is always there is always circling me. Saying that things that make me even more scared. I got to see what he looked like once but I can't remember what he looked like. It's all a blur." Darien pausing.

Rex nodded for him to go on. "I can't remember too much. But now that I'm at Hogwarts, things changed. I'm in the dungeons. The darkest of shadows are always chasing me. But these dungeons, they're different then the ones we've seen. They're…..they've got snake statues every where. Then last nights dreams before I woke up….do you remember that ghost I told you and Lionel about?" He asked. Rex nodded. Darien met his eyes. "He was in it. He was just standing there glaring into the darkness. He told me to wake up. That there was danger. I just don't get it." He said rubbing his temples.

"Maybe you should ask him." Someone said. Both Darien and Rex jumped and spun around. It was Lionel at the door way. He had been listening. He stepped forward and sat down on his bed staring at Darien. "Look, Darien. I don't what you see when you see this ghost you keep mentioning. I don't if you even see anything. But I think if you see him again, ask him who he is and why you only see him." He said. Darien nodded. "I might just do that." He said. Lionel nodded as he laid back on his bed. "So, how are you doing? You feeling okay?" he asked staring up at the ceiling. Rex stood and went back to his cards. Darien laid back down. "Yeah, still a little shaken but getting over it." He said. Lionel sat up again and looked at him. "Don't blame you for still being scared. I was just in the mess hall and everyone looks paranoid. After hearing about the Dementor being in the castle, they're all a little psyched. Even the Slytherins." He said. Darien blew out a long sigh. "This is getting weird." He said. Both Lionel and Rex nodded. 

The next few days weren't too easy for Darien. Classes started up again and everyone would be staring at him. Word got out about what Dumbledore said about Darien's wand having a mind of its own and now the students would stare at him. It really un-nerved him. Some of the students began to question him again about the Dementor and it just made things even more frustrated. Not to mention the letter he had received from his mother. She had finally found out and went berserk. In her letter she kept asking him if he was alright. Darien laughed a little when she told him in the letter how she almost came to Hogwarts to see him, herself. But Remus managed to tell her that Darien was fine and doing just great now.

The worst part was Whitman made sure to rub Darien's fear of Dementors in his face. It only backfired in his face though. It started in Potions. Snape was making them all do a potion on skin color change. Apparently Snape was just trying to enlighten the moods of the some the students by doing something fun for once. While Darien and Lionel's potion was boiling, a piece of paper flew across the aisle just as Snape walked past and landed in front of Darien. Darien looked up at the sneering Whitman. He looked back at the paper before unfolding it to see what it said. It was a drawing of a Dementor attacking Darien. Darien felt his temper boiling up again. Lionel and Rex had looked at the note too and both sent Whitman a dirty glare. The blonde Gryffindor took the note from Darien and burned it on their boiler.

Whitman had decided to do some more pictures of Darien being attacked but this time when he tossed towards Darien, Snape saw it. He gave his wand a wave and the note stopped in midair. "What is this?" He demanded as he strode forward and snatched the note out of the air. He turned his black eyes onto Whitman who was looking a bit smug but nervous at the same time. He thought Snape might have gotten a kick out of it since he liked to bully Gryffindors a lot. Boy, was he wrong.

Snape looked the drawing over before his eyes narrowed dangerously and he turned them onto Whitman. "Do you find this funny, Mr. Whitman?" He asked seriously. Whitman's smile fell very quickly. A surprised look on his face. Snape held the note up with his hand and waved his wand. It floated in the air and enlarged for everyone to see. The picture of the Dementor attacking Darien played over and over and over. Snape just stood next to the large piece of paper. Glaring right at Whitman. "Being attacked by a Dementor is not something to joke about." He said dangerously. No one was smiling. Some of the Gryffindors were glaring straight at Whitman. "Tell me, Mr. Whitman, even if this is not apart of the Potions class. What is a Dementor?" Snape asked in a cold tone just glaring right into Whitman's eyes. Whitman didn't speak. He was looking Snape right in the eye. "A Dementor is one of the most vile creatures in our world. It is not a creature that takes pity on anyone. You ever become a Dementor's prey, it will not listen to your pathetic pleas! It will empty you of your soul by the Dementor's Kiss! You will be worst from dead, Whitman!" Snape snapped. Whitman and a few Slytherins jumped at the tone Snape had. He was angry and everyone knew that if Snape was angry, it would not turn out very well. 

"The Gryffindor student you are merely taunting could have lost more than just his life the other night! And it is most unacceptable to make fun of something so terrible! Fifty points will be taken from Slytherin for your joke, Mr. Ian Whitman! And a week's detention!" He snarled. Not one Gryffindor smiled though. They would have if it was something different but the joke Whitman pulled wasn't funny at all. Even some of the Slytherins didn't think so.

After class, they were all going to lunch. Some of the Gryffindors were grumbling about Whitman's sick joke about Darien. "Man, I swear Snape looked like he was going to snap." Lionel said rubbing his neck. Sam stepped up. "Well, would you have blamed him? After that stunt Whitman pulled? I mean, Snape's right. That's something you don't joke about. Darien could have seriously gotten hurt that night." She said. Lionel gave her a look but changed his mind. Darien could see some students' staring at him. "I wish they would just stop staring. So I almost got my soul sucked out by a Dementor, so what? Do they really have to stare?" He muttered. Lionel glared around at some of the students. "What are you looking at! Never seen a survivor before!" He snapped waving his fist. The students quickly looked away. Darien, Rex, Sam and Lionel laughed as they walked down the hall. "Seriously. They really do need to stop staring. It's only been two days now." Sam said tossing her long black hair back. Darien nodded and looked forward. His eyes widen when he saw him. He halted in his tracks making Lionel, Rex and Sam stop and look at him. "Darien? What's wrong?" Rex asked. Darien was staring upwards near the ceiling at a window. 

There was that ghost again. He was just sitting there looking out. One foot dangling while the other was crossed. The ghost was looking outside at whatever he was looking at. His hood was up like always and he was running his fingers through his small beard looking deep in thought.

"Darien?" Sam asked poking Darien in the side to get his attention. Darien looked at her. "What are you looking at?" She asked glancing upwards. Darien looked back at the ghost then at Lionel and Rex. "You guys, it's him again. He's up there." He said pointing. All four Gryffindors looked up. "Uh, what are you looking at?" Sam asked. Lionel and Rex quickly looked at her. "Uh……nothing. Go away." Lionel said. Sam shot him a look before stomping off. "Jerk." She spat as she went. Darien stared up at the Ghost. "You sure he's up there?" Rex asked. Darien nodded. "Yeah, he's looking out the window." He said.

Lionel looked around. "Your not going to call out to him are you?" He asked. Darien looked around noticing that there were people in the halls. "I mean, we can't see him. What makes you sure everyone else will? If he's up there." Lionel said. Darien nodded. "I see where your getting at, Lionel. I start calling him down, everyone's gonna think I'm nuts." He said. Lionel gave a short laugh. "I already think your nuts but I'm not saying I don't believe you. If you were trying to pull a joke you wouldn't keep on doing it. It would get old." He said. Rex nodded. Darien shook his head. "I better do it some other time. When there's no one really around." He said. Lionel and Rex nodded in agreement. "Come on. Let's get some grub now."


	7. Chapter 6

A/N: Now I know your going to hate me in this chapter. By the end of the chapter, something really bad happens. But I won't spoil it for you. And Darien will finally get to see what this Umbra thing that Draco told him about later on.

Chapter 6.

Darien hadn't seen the ghost again for a while. It was like the ghost didn't want to be seen. Not even by him. He didn't tell anyone but Lionel and Rex about it. Sam was now badgering them about what they were talking about but they wouldn't tell her anything. She got so annoyed and refused to talk to them for awhile. Not that they cared. Darien was annoyed with her too because she bothered them so much.

Whitman wouldn't give up on trying to make Darien and his friends' lives a living hell. He would secretly taunt them about the Dementor and about being Daddy's little boy. Only things got a little better after two days later. Hogwarts had a big surprise on Thursday afternoon. Mostly for Darien.

They were just getting out of Herbology with Ravenclaw. Lionel and Leoni were bickering again as always. Apparently Leoni found out how Sam was being treated and she decide to lecture her brother about it. Lionel wanted to hurry after class just to get away from his twin sister. "Lionel, you are such a creep!" Leoni snapped as Lionel covered his ears trying to block out his sister's voice. "I am not!"

"Am too!"

"Am not!"

"Am too!"

"Am not!"

Darien rolled his eyes listening to them. "When are you guys going to start getting along?" He asked already knowing the answer. "Never!" Both twins cried out and went back to the am too/am not argument. Rex was covering his ears. "La, la, la, la. Not listening." He said making Darien laugh and shake his head. He turned to watch the twins arguing again but soon grew bored.

With a fake yawn, he folded his arms. "When you guys are done fighting, you can find us in the Great Hall getting dinner." He said. But the twins weren't listening.

Darien shrugged and turned around to walk away when suddenly he ran into something that felt like a wall knocking him backwards right off his feet. "Whoa! Darien, look before you walk." Someone laughed. Darien blinked a few times before looking up to see who he ran into. Only to grin big time because he was looking at the face of Harry Potter.

"Harry!" He said cheerfully. That made the twins stop arguing and look to see who Darien was talking to. Their jaws dropped seeing the famous Harry Potter. Harry was smiling broadly down at Darien. His black hair was a little longer but still messy. His emerald green eyes sparkled under his glasses. And there it was. The traditional lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Harry was wearing black cloths with cloak around his shoulders. A silver clasp pinned on the cloak with the letters HP on it.

And right behind Harry stood that friendly looking red head, Ron Weasley. His red hair was longer too but he kept it tied back. He wore dark blue robes and a black cloak like Harry's. The Weasley crest on a clasp like Harry's too. His face was still framed with freckles every where. He was grinning down at Darien too.

"Ron!" Darien exclaimed happily. "Well, if it isn't Darien Fenrir Lupin. You sure have grown. But can't really tell how tall you are with you down there and we're up here." Ron joked holding out a hand along with Harry. Darien took both of their hands and they lifted him up onto his feet. "Harry, Ron, what are you doing here? Aren't you suppose to be at work?" Darien asked dusting himself off.

Harry shrugged. "We are at work. Dumbledore has invited us to come to Hogwarts on a special invitation." He said. Darien nodded before he remembered his friends were still standing there. He looked at them. "Oh! These are my friends. Lionel Boyd and his twin sister, Leoni Boyd." Darien said pointing at the twins. Then at Rex. "This is Rex Rory Kegerreis." He then looked at Sam. "And that's Samara Grogen." The students all stared wide eyed at Harry and Ron. "Guys, these are my mom's best friends and all, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley." He said.

Harry and Ron nodded to the shell shocked students grinning. "Harry, I bet you a Galleon that their going to ask for your autograph." Ron said smiling. Harry rose an eyebrow glancing at him. "No way. I know their going to." He said shaking his head. Leoni, Lionel and Rex all jumped forward. "Harry Potter! Can we have your autograph!" They all chimed. Everyone laughed.

Darien was walking beside Harry as the others were busy asking Ron questions. "Harry, what are you and Ron doing here?" He asked. Harry stuffed his hands into his pockets as he looked around. "Well, Darien. It's sort of obvious. We heard about what happened with that Dementor." He said. Darien let out a groan.

Harry just shook his head. "We're not here to check up on you if that's what your worried about. Dumbledore has written the Ministry about what happened. He's asked for a few Aurors to come looking for the creature and to make sure it doesn't come back into the castle." He said. Darien nodded.

Harry looked back at him. "So, are you alright? Since it happened?" He asked. Darien sighed and shook his head. "I'm just a little jumpy right now. It touched me, Harry. It grabbed me around the neck to perform the Dementor's Kiss on me. I can still feel it's hand on my neck." He said rubbing his throat.

Harry looked at him with concern. "Those things are horrible, Darien. It will take a little time trying to get over it but you've got to remember. Your safe now. It's not here." He said. Darien nodded. "I know." He said. Harry smiled and patted Darien's shoulder. "Anyway, how's Snape been treating ya? Is he still the same old Snape?" He asked. Darien rolled his eyes with a laugh. He told Harry all about the first weeks, minus the ghost that he was seeing or the dreams. He didn't to tell him about those yet. He told him about Whitman and how mean that kid was. Harry just nodded in understanding.

For the next few days there were Aurors in Hogwarts taking a look around for the Dementors. The students were not to bother them while they worked. Not once. No matter who they were. Many of the students wanted to get the chance to talk to Harry Potter but they couldn't because they were told not to while he was searching through the castle.

After four days, they couldn't find anything so they decided that the Dementor was no longer around. Which they were satisfied. No Dementor meant no more attacks. But they were to alert the Aurors as soon as possible if the Dementor showed up again. Which Dumbledore would.

Fall had come finally fallen and the Halloween season was approaching. A few times Remus had fallen ill and everyone knew what that meant. At least the people who did know what he was. The next full moon would be approaching soon. In fact it was going to be on Halloween night.

Everyone was so excited for Halloween. Sam was telling everyone what Halloween in America. Darien was impressed by it. He wondered what it would be like going trick or treating. Dumbledore announced that there was going to be a Halloween Party just like they did almost every year since 1996. It was going to be a blast. The whole castle was being decorated for it too. There was the traditional Runespoor in the Great Hall hissing at everyone that passed. There were a few dancing skeletons making some of the students laugh when they dropped their leg bones or something. It was an interesting sight.

Darien was looking forward to this year's Halloween. He was trying to decide what he was going to be. That is until Lionel suggested that the three of them, Darien, Rex and himself, be the three musketeers together. Laughing they all agreed and began to work on their costumes while on their free time.

Now something wasn't really right though. Darien's dreams were still haunting him badly. And the one that kept taunting him in the dreams seemed to be growing more and more excited. It was like he knew something was going to happen. Something bad was going to happen to Darien and he had a feeling it was going to be very soon. He wasn't really feeling well in the mornings when he woke up. It was just a stomach he was sure of. He felt nauseated every morning but he never had the urge to throw up. It would pass very quickly as soon as he woke.

He was confused on what it was about but never said anything about it to anyone. And was worst he began to have a few mood swings once in awhile. Sometimes he would be just happy as a loon then he would feel angry. He didn't get it. He was wondering why he was starting to feel these mood swings. He figured it must have been nothing. The mood swings only lasted for two days then he was back to normal. Lionel and Rex had noticed the new behavior but never said anything about it.

Halloween was quickly approaching now and the three friends' costumes were finished. They were so happy now they were done. "Man, these are going to be so cool!" Rex said looking the costumes over. Darien grinned. "Yeah, we're going to be the best." He said. Lionel grinned.

"I wonder if we can have real swords. If we can I'm going to poke Whitman in the butt." He laughed evilly. Darien and Rex gave him a look but laughed. "Ew." The short one said. Lionel looked at him then his jaw dropped. "Ugh! Rex! Get your mind out of the gutter!" He exclaimed tackling him and started to tickle the poor kid. Darien laughed and went to rescue Rex.

They were just wrestling around when a sharp pain shot up in Darien. He lurched up and grabbed his stomach. The pain decreased quickly. But both Lionel and Rex had seen what happened. They sat up and looked at him. "What's wrong, Darien?" Rex asked sitting on his heels. Darien shook his head standing up. "Nothing. Just a cramp." He said. Lionel and Rex looked at each other. "You sure?" The blonde asked. Darien nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. It happens once in a while. Don't worry about it." He said. The boys shrugged and went down for lunch. As soon as they left the room, in the corner of the room where it was darker, two red eyes appeared out of no where. And a white fanged grin. Then they vanished.

Finally Halloween had come up. Everyone was happy. Some of the students were already wearing their costumes. Darien was talking to Sirius about his costume with Lionel and Rex's. Sirius just grinned. "Hey, I never wore a costume to a Halloween party before." He said shaking his head. Darien stared at him. "You didn't?" He asked. Sirius laughed wickedly. "Nah, I went in the nude." He said. Darien's jaw fell and shook his head violently. "Ew! Bad images! Bad images!" He exclaimed. Sirius laughed.

That is until Remus stepped up and playfully slapped his best friend in the back of the head. "What are you putting in my son's head?" He asked sitting down in his chair. Sirius just smiled innocently. "Nothing." He said over sweetly. Remus shook his head rolled his eyes. He gave Darien a smile. "Hey, Darien. How's it going? Going to that party tonight?" He asked. Darien grinned and nodded. "'course." He said. Remus nodded. "Your mother sends word. She says have fun. And stay out of trouble." He said. Darien laughed. "What's the fun in that?" he asked. Sirius laughed while Remus smiled and shook his head. He pointed at Darien. "You need to stop taking Sirius' advice." He said. Darien laughed and went to sit down.

It was almost time for the party to start. Everyone was getting into their costumes. Darien, Lionel and Rex was in their musketeer costumes and were heading down to the Great Hall now. They ran into Sam and Leoni on the way down. Leoni was wearing a dark blue dress and her hair was pulled up in an elegant bun. Sam on the other hand was dressed up in a white dirty dress and her hair fell over her face and back.

"So, what are you girls suppose to be?" Darien asked as they approached them. Leoni folded her arms as she shrugged. "I'm Rowena Ravenclaw." She said simply. Sam rolled her eyes as she smirked. "Samara from The Ring." Lionel rose an eyebrow with a smirk. "Oh, that's cute Sam. But you don't need makeup to look like her. You already do." He teased.

Bam! Lionel had just received a sharp jab in the stomach by Sam. Both girls stuck up their noses and stomped away. Darien and Rex laughed as they watched Lionel double over. "You know, you really need to stop pissing her off." Rex said. Lionel just groaned.

They were all in the Great Hall just partying the night through. They had records of The Wyrd Sisters playing while everyone danced in groups or together. Darien was getting something to drink from the refreshments table while watching Lionel joke around with a few of the Hufflepuff students. He spotted Rex talking to Dumbledore and was having a good time. Everyone was smiling or laughing. Including Darien.

That was until he felt the sharp pain in his stomach again. Darien put his hand to his stomach and groaned. But like always the pain came and gone. But he felt very hot and needed to take a step out of the room. Darien looked around before he left. He took a step out into the night air, feeling the fall breeze touch his face. But for some reason it wasn't cooling him down as he thought it would. He felt hotter. Like his skin was on fire. Darien let out a small groan as the pain struck again. "What's happening to me?" He whispered, staggering down the stairs onto the grass.

"Your inner demon is coming out, Darien." Someone said. Darien jumped and spun around looking into the darkness. His eyes grew wide seeing the one thing he only saw in his dreams. It was the black hooded figure with red eyes.

"You….but your not real!" Darien cried out stepping back. The figure grinned the white fanged grin. "Of course I'm real. I've always been real." The figure said. Darien backed away feeling his fear rising up. "Your sanctuary will not always protect you, Lupin. I bet you remember those words. I've always told them to you while you slept. Ever since it was growing inside of you." The creature said. Darien shivered.

"Who are you! What do you want with me?" He asked fearfully. The figure stepped closer making the 11 year old back up more. "I am The Umbra. I believe Draco Malfoy told you about me." He said. Darien gasped sharply and his eyes grew wider. He could still feel the pain within. "What…..what do you mean it is growing inside of me?" he asked shaking. Umbra grinned again. "Your inner demon. The curse your wretched father has passed onto you." He said and pointed upward.

Darien slowly looked up and saw the thick clouds rolling back to reveal the full moon. The pain inside him doubled, no tripled. It burned within him. His skin was searing like fire. It hurt so bad. Darien doubled over falling to his knees. He looked at his hands.

They were changing. He was changing into something. Darien was more than scared. He didn't know what was happening to him. He heard the seams of his costume ripping apart as he changed. Every thing around him was darkening. He could hear Umbra laughing wickedly. "Let the fun begin." was the last thing he heard before everything had gone black.

A/N: I think you can guess what had just happened. If not, you'll figure it out later. Sorry for being so evil to poor Darien. I can't help it. Just please don't kill me with the Avada Kederva curse, please. But do review.


	8. Chapter 7

A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for reviewing. I'm going to do a quick shoutout.

SpikesDreamer: I'm glad your loving it so much. You'll be seeing a lot of original characters.

MorganLeFay99:cowers in fear: I-I'm...s-sorry. It's not going to be too horrible in some chapters. As for the Umbra thing, you will find out about it soon.

Lady11Occult: I think your the only one who caught on but then again, the other readers probably figured it out too. Like I've said with MorganLeFay99, you'll find out about the Umbra soon.

And on mental note. I think someone asked about that ghost that only Darien could see. Well in this chapter, your going to find out who he is. And not to mention, one of the grown ups is going to catch on to what's going on with Darien. Anyway read on.

Chapter 7.

His head was pounding like there was a jackhammer inside it. He could feel a cold chill around him. Not to mention something wet. Darien groaned as he started to wake up. He was lying on hard ground and leaves. 'Huh?' Darien thought as he opened his eyes. It was still dark outside. He could feel the wind blowing through the trees and hear night creatures. Bats were flying above him in the air.

Darien pushed him up feeling something awkward. He blinked several times looking around. He was out in the Dark forest. And the worst part…..He looked down and saw that he was stark naked. Darien gasped as he shot to his feet looking around. "What the hell!" He cried out. He looked himself over and found that there was dark liquid on his chest and neck. The smell told him it was blood. Panicking he checked himself for any wounds but found none. "What happened?" He whispered. He couldn't remember how he got out there.

He was really scared right about now. What the hell happened to him? It wasn't making any sense. Darien looked around quickly before hurrying towards the castle, being careful not to be seen. It would be an ultimate embarrassment if a girl saw him naked running through the halls. Not to mention how much trouble he would get in. Darien hurried as fast as he could through the halls being careful not to be seen. He crept from door to door as he went. He was sure glad that the portraits were all asleep. He was sure if one of the women in the portraits would start screaming.

Finally he reached the Gryffindor house entrance. The Fat Lady was sleeping but he gave the password any ways. She swung open without waking up. Darien took a quick look inside to see if anyone was in the common room. It was his luck that there wasn't. He ran as fast as he could up the boy's stairs to get into the bathroom to take a quick rinse off to get the unfamiliar blood off of him. After he washed it all off he hurried into his room over to his trunk. Luckily, Lionel, Rex and Paul were asleep so they wouldn't bombard him with questions right now. He opened his trunk and pulled out his boxers pulling them on. After he had them on, he jumped right into bed shivering a little from nervousness. He just stared at nothing trying to think about what had happened. Why couldn't he remember? There was something nagging at him from the back of his head but he could grab a hold of it and take a look. He stayed awake for a little bit longer before finally going to sleep.

Morning came finally. Darien was still asleep when something came crashed onto his bed jolting him awake. He gasped and looked to see what it was. It was Lionel goofing off again. "So, where were you last night?" the blonde asked. Darien sighed and plopped back down on his pillow. He was dead tired from all that running last night. "What do you mean?" He asked rubbing his head. Lionel shrugged. "Well, when Rex and I came up here looking for you, you weren't here. Where'd you go?" He asked. Darien blinked away the sleepiness. "I….I went for a walk. I must have fallen asleep somewhere." He said. Lionel stared at him with disbelief. "Uh-huh. Come on. Tell me the truth." He said. Darien propped himself up. "I really don't remember, Lionel. I swear." He told him. Lionel shrugged. "Okay. You gonna get up some time soon? You've already missed a Transfiguration and Potions. Not to mention half of DADA." He said sitting up.

Darien jolted up again. "What! What time is it!" He asked. Lionel checked his watch. "It's 11:50. It's almost time for lunch." He said. Darien jumped out of bed really quickly and scrambled for his cloths. "Dammit! I am in so much trouble!" He exclaimed. Lionel stared wide eyed. "Whoa, whoa! Darien, never seen you move that fast before." He said grinning. Darien rolled his eyes as he pulled on his pants. "I just hope I'm not in too much trouble! I can't believe I overslept." He said quickly buttoning up his pants then pulled on his shirt. Lionel shook his head. "Hey, it happens, Darien. Don't worry about it." He said. Darien slowed down and ran his hand through his hair.

"Man, what happened to you last night? You look so tired." Lionel asked as they went down the stairs. Darien shook his head as he tried to fix his tie. "I don't really know, Lionel. It's a blank. I could have been sleep walking. My mom caught me doing that one time but it's just so weird." He said letting out a deep sigh. Lionel stared at him. "I'm starting to get worried about you, bud." He announced.

Just then Rex ran up looking very surprised. "Hey, Darien, Lionel! Did you hear what happened this morning?" He asked tripping on the last stair. Lionel and Darien looked at each other. "Huh? No what happened?" They both asked. Rex stood and stepped over to his friends. "You remember Hagrid's dog, Fang? Something big got a hold of him last night and killed him. Hagrid is so upset." He said. Darien's jaw fell and his eyes grew wide. Lionel looked just as shocked. "What? That really big boarhound? How the hell would something kill that?" He asked. Rex shook his head. "Good question. Dumbledore and some of the teachers are investigating. From what I heard, what ever killed Fang didn't just kill him. It ripped the dog apart. It's down by Hagrid's hut too. I overheard Sirius telling Dumbledore this morning." He said. Darien felt like he was going to be sick now. 'The blood…..the black outs…..did I…..did I kill Fang?' He thought.

They all hurried down towards Hagrid's hut. A few of the students were out there trying to get a look at what was going on. There were a few teachers too. Darien could see Dumbledore standing beside a very upset looking Hagrid and Grawp, Hagrid's brother. Sirius was somewhere near the garden doing something but Darien couldn't tell what it was. Remus was there too.

The three friends hurried down and found Sam and Leoni there. "Hey, what's going on?" Lionel asked. Sam and Leoni looked at them. "They're trying to clean up the mess. Whatever killed Fang it made a really big mess. Spread his body parts every where. There's blood all over." Sam said. Darien pushed past a little to get a better look but what he saw was an understatement to what Sam said. There was a nothing left of Fang. Blood on the grass and on the fence. Darien swore he could see Fang's head in the cabbages. Or at least what was left of it.

"Alright, everyone back at the castle now. You all shouldn't be here any ways." McGonagall ordered. The students all grumbled and started back up. Darien just stood in his spot staring with horror. Remus turned around to see him and let out a long sigh. He hurried over to stand in front of his son. "Darien, you should be back at the castle. Your mother would kill me if you saw something like this." He said. Darien shook his head staring at the blood splatters. "What did this, dad?" He asked. Remus turned to look the mess. "A big animal maybe. Something mean and bloodthirsty." He said. Darien shuddered hearing those words. "Darien, please go back up to the castle." He heard his father say. The 11 year old nodded and walked back.

Sirius stepped up. "That big animal you mentioned. That mean and bloodthirsty creature you told Darien about. It was a werewolf, wasn't it?" He asked. Remus stared after Darien not looking at his best friend. "Yes, Sirius. I can smell a werewolf here. It wasn't me who killed Fang. I was locked up in the shack, remember? Plus I have better control of my wolf side. I've been able to control Moony for a long time. Since the second war ended." He said. Sirius nodded. "You remember what Hermione said?" He asked. Remus slowly looked at him and nodded. "Yes. She said the war hasn't ended yet. We're only in the middle of it. I just don't see how, Sirius. She doesn't either. She just has that feeling." He told him. Sirius patted Remus' shoulder. "Her feelings are usually right, remember?" Remus ran his hand through his hair nodding before the two of them turned back to finish cleaning up.

Darien was taking a walk on his own. He told Lionel and Rex he needed to have some time to himself to think. So the two just stayed in the Gryffindor Tower playing wizarding chess. Darien was in the owlery visiting the owls. He loved the birds. He found them very interesting. Listening to them hooting helped soothe his nerves too. Darien was starting to remember a little of what had happened that night. He remembered the voice and the name. "The Umbra. What is the Umbra?" He asked himself.

"It is not what you should ask. It is who." Someone said. Darien jumped and spun around looking around. His heart was pounding hard against his chest. His breathing rapidly increased. His eyes quickly taking in everything, trying to find the source of the voice. "Wh-who's there?" He asked shaking. Something dropped from above and hit the floor with a loud thud. Darien jumped again and looked up but saw nothing but the owls. He looked back at the ground and slowly made his way to what fell. It was a book. Darien bent down and picked it up.

"You will find your answers in there, boy. You need to find the clues for yourself." The voice from above rang out. Darien looked up again. "Who are you? Where are you?" He asked looking around. "I am no one of importance. Only a spirit who searches my own answers." The voice rang out from behind him.

Darien jumped and spun around meeting the eyes of the ghost. He was just standing there with his arms folded across his chest. Darien stepped back with surprise. "You…." He paused. The ghost tilted his head. "So I am right. You can see me. I was wondering if you were looking at me at the first day of the year. And then weeks ago when I was on the wall." He said. Darien looked around for anyone else but there was none. His eyes went back to the ghost who just stood there. "So….how come I can see you and no one else can?" He asked. The ghost turned and started to walk towards the window. More like hover.

"I do not know. I have not been seen by anyone for five hundred years. Since I had returned to Hogwarts. Not even the Hogwarts ghosts can see me. And if anyone has, they have not done anything or say anything to show it." He said. Darien slowly walked towards him. The ghost quickly looked at him with those sharp empty eyes making the boy stop in his footsteps. By the looks of it, the ghost didn't like people being too close to him. "Who are you?" Darien asked again.

The ghost turned his eyes back to the window. "I am the ghost who no one but you see. My name has not been forgotten but it is not remembered." He said. Darien squinted his eyes. "You like talking in riddles don't you." He asked. The ghost lightly smirked before looking back at him. "I have spoken in riddles for many years. I was one of the founders of this school." He turned fully and bowed his head. "Salazar Slytherin is my name." He said. Darien's eyes went big as galleons. His heart could have stopped right there. "Your…..your Salazar Slytherin?" He asked. Slytherin nodded once. "I am." He simply said. Darien stared at him before looking down at the ground. "I am also aware of that wand in your pocket." Slytherin spoke softly. Darien looked back up at him then pulled the wand out. "Yeah, about that. Why did it choose me? I'm a Gryffindor not a Slytherin. Why would it choose someone who wanted to be in that house?" He asked. Slytherin didn't answer. He just looked back out the window. "Come here, boy." He said. Darien stared but slowly obeyed.

Slytherin pointed out the window. "Look up there. At the west tower." He said. Darien looked at the tower he was pointing at. He didn't see anything unusual or interesting. There were a few gargoyles up there but nothing else. "See that big one?" Slytherin asked. Darien glanced at him but looked at the largest gargoyle resting right between two small ones. "Yeah. What about it?" He asked. Slytherin narrowed his dead eyes at them. "Every gargoyle you see in this castle is connected to that one. Except one. The one who guards the Headmaster's quarters and office. Every gargoyle you see in the halls, watch their eyes. They watch you like a hawk. Mainly you." He said. Darien turned his head to look at Slytherin again. Slytherin looked back.

"Why do they watch me?" Darien asked with suspicion. Slytherin narrowed his eyes to deadly slits. "They are creatures of the darkness, Darien Lupin. They work for the darkness. Gargoyles were known to be protectors of sacred places and haters of evil. But because of their ties with the darkness, they made a deal with the darkness itself. They watch you because of Umbra." He said. Darien's attention perked up even more. "Umbra...who is he? Why is he always haunting my dreams?" He asked. Slytherin shook his head. "That I can not tell you, Gryffindor student. Umbra is the most mysterious creature of all dark creatures. This mystery is for you to solve." He said. Darien shook his head. "I need help. I can't do it alone. Not without help." he said. Slytherin looked back out the window. He was quiet for a long time before breathing out a long sigh. "Very well. I will try to help you, Gryffindor student. I suppose this is why I am still a wandering spirit. A ghost whom ghosts can not see, who travels to find the truth of how I fell so far." He turned his eyes back onto Darien. "Look through that book, Lupin. It should help." he said. Darien nodded. "I'll read it." He told him.

Suddenly the door to the owlery opened making Darien jump and turned to see who was coming in. It was Snape. Snape looked right at Darien with suspicion. "Lupin? What are you doing up here?" He asked seriously. Darien looked back at Slytherin, but the ghost had vanished. He quickly looked back at the book in his arms. "Uh, just reading." He said holding it up. He looked up at the owls. "Plus I like the owls." He said. Snape narrowed his eyes but gave a nod. "Go back to your house." He ordered. Darien nodded and hurried out. Snape glanced around the room for anyone else but seeing that there was none, he closed the door and left.

Darien hurried back to his room to do some reading. He wanted to find out the answers of who this Umbra was. And what he was. Apparently he had a history with Slytherin. Salazar Slytherin didn't seem to like this Umbra very much. Darien could see it in the way Slytherin had spoken about him. He quickly sat on the bed and looked the book over. His eyes lit up seeing what it was. "Hogwarts, A history? How the heck am I suppose find the answers in this? I've read this book over a hundred times." He said setting it down again. He blew out a sigh and shook his head. "Maybe it's different than the one I own." He began to read. He began to flip through the book looking for anything that might have helped him find who or what Umbra was. But every thing seemed to be just the same as he book.

Just then the door opened and in came Paul. Darien had glanced up but then looked back at his book. "Hey." Paul said as he moved over to his own bed. Darien nodded. "Hey." He said. Paul plopped onto his bed. "So what do you think about what's happening this year?" he asked. Darien looked up again and sighed. "Don't know. It's a little crazy. I wonder what killed Fang." He said. Paul shook his head. "I've been hearing that it was a stray werewolf. At least that's what Professor Lupin thinks." He said. Darien looked at him. "A werewolf?" he asked. Paul nodded. "Your dad knows it wasn't him. He was locked up in that shack in the forest so he couldn't get loose. So it had to be another." He said. Darien looked back down at the book with wide eyes.

"_Your inner demons are coming out, Darien."_ _"The curse your wretched father has passed onto you."_

Darien felt his heart drop. Could it be…..? Paul saw the look on his face. He narrowed his eyes. "Darien?" He asked. Darien looked up. "Huh?' he asked. Paul stood and stepped over to him. "Darien? Are you alright?" he asked. He looked very uncertain and worried. Darien forced a smile. "Yeah. I'm fine. No problem." He said smiling. He stood and grabbed his book as he went. "I'm going to find Lionel and Rex. Talk to you later, Paul." He said. Paul nodded moving back to his bed. "Okay. See you later." He said. He watched Darien leave the room. He shook his head after he left. "That guy is kind of weird." He whispered. He shrugged and went back to what he was doing.

Instead of looking for Lionel and Rex, Darien went to the library hoping to get some peace and quiet while he did his little research. He sat in a corner where there was no one around so he could read. Darien opened the book again and began looking through it. He had a parchment and quill out and ready to write anything down that may have had anything to do with Slytherin or anything that said Umbra. He flipped through the pages as he went hoping to see anything. It wasn't easy though. There was nothing he could find about Umbra. Sighing, he slammed the book shut and ran his hand through his hair. "Man, what am I looking for?" He asked.

"That's what I want to know." Someone said. Darien jumped and looked up. There stood Harry Potter smiling. Darien let out a long sigh of relief. "Hey, Harry. What are you doing here?" He asked smiling. Harry walked over and pulled out a chair next to Darien. "Just coming to visit again. I heard what happened to Fang and thought Hagrid could use some company. He's sure upset about what happened. Plus now we're looking for any werewolves that might be in the Dark Forest." He said with a shrug. Darien sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. Harry tilted his head looking at the 11 year old. "Dari, are you alright? You look worried about something." He said. Darien shrugged a little. "Just been reading. Looking for something that might not there." He said. Harry looked at the book. "Hogwarts, A history, huh? What are you looking for?" He asked.

Darien stared down at the table. Should he tell Harry what was going on? What was in his dreams. And what he remembered on Halloween night. Harry stared at Darien for a minute before narrowing his eyes a little. "Darien?" He asked. Darien looked up again at him. "What's wrong? Do you know something? About what happened to Fang?" Harry asked. Darien shook his head slowly. "No. I only know what everyone does. Is dad going to get in trouble? Since he's a werewolf and they're saying a werewolf killed Fang. Is he going to be in trouble with the ministry?" He asked. Harry faintly smiled. "No, Darien. We all know that your father has control of his werewolf side. He wouldn't attack Fang. Is that what your worried about?" He asked. Darien shrugged. "Sort of." He said. Harry flipped his bangs out of his eyes. "So what is troubling you? Whatever it is, you can tell me, you know. I've had hard times at school before, remember?" He asked. Darien looked back at the book. A thought came to his mind.

"Harry? Do you remember the Chamber of Secrets?" He asked looking back up. Harry blinked a few times. "Well…..that came out quick. Yeah, why?" he asked. Darien stared Harry right in the eye. "What did it look like?" he asked. Harry scratched his head. "Your mother would scalp me if I told you, Darien. It's been a long time ago since that happened." He said. Darien leaned against the table. "Please tell me." He said. Harry rose his eyebrows as he put a thoughtful look on his face. "Darien, seriously. What does the Chamber of Secrets have to do with anything?" he asked. Darien shook his head vigorously. "Nothing! I just want to know." He said. Harry blew out a sigh. "Okay but don't tell Hermione I told you. She would commit murder and I'd be the victim." He said. Darien smiled as he sat back in the chair.

"I remember it pretty good. The Chamber of Secrets was a dark, dank place. Long stone corridors. It was like being in giant pipes or a very large dungeon. There was water running down the walls so it could have been near under the lake. It was just a scary looking place down there." He said. Darien nodded. "Weren't there statues? Snake heads?" He asked. Harry looked at him thoughtfully. "Yes. There was. How'd you know that?" he asked. Darien shrugged. "There was also this large statue of Salazar Slytherin. It was were the Basilisk slept. I remember it too well." Harry said nodding slightly. Darien opened his mouth to say something but he felt like someone was standing right behind him.

"So this is Harry Potter? The heir of Godric, huh?" Slytherin said. Darien jumped in his seat and spun around making Harry jump a little. "God! You scared the hell out of me! Why the hell do you have to sneak up on me all the time!" He exclaimed. Slytherin had been standing right behind them and was studying Harry. He only smirked wickedly after Darien was done yelling at him. He rose an eyebrow and looked to his right just as Madam Pince walked around a book case. "What are you yelling about! This is a library! No talking too loud!" She lectured. Darien and Harry cringed a little. "Sorry." They both muttered. Madam Pince eyed them suspiciously then left. Darien turned his narrowed eyes back onto the ghost. "Why the hell do you have scare me every time we talk?" he asked with annoyance. Slytherin sneered. "Are you forgetting one thing?" he asked. Darien narrowed his eyes even more. "What?" He asked. Slytherin looked pointingly at Harry. Darien cringed as he slowly looked at Harry.

"Uh, Darien. Who are you talking to?" Harry asked folding his arms. Darien tightly squeezed his eyes shut and face-palmed. "Crap, I forgot." He said. Slytherin just laughed. "This is the most amusing situation I have ever seen. Go on. Tell him whose standing right behind him." He said. Darien opened his eyes and looked at him. "You may find this amusing but I don't." He looked at Harry. "Um, Harry. Turn around, please." He said. Harry eyed him suspiciously then turned around. He looked around for anyone that Darien may have been talking to. Darien stood and went to stand right next to Slytherin who didn't move. "Uh, Harry. Allow me to introduce you to….." He paused with a wince. Harry stared with his eyebrows rising. "This is Salazar Slytherin."

A/N: Opps. Review


	9. Chapter 8

A/N: Hey, everyone. Sorry it took me so long to update this story. I've been kind of busy lately and not to mention working on this story. This chapter is going to be a little short. Darien and Harry is going to converse with Slytherin a little and get a hint about the Umbra.

**Chapter 8.**

Harry stared with wider eyes as he listened to what Darien told him. Darien had just spent the next hour explaining everything to his 'uncle'. He told him about the ghost of Slytherin, who was pacing behind them. About the Slytherin's wand which now belong to Darien. And he told him about his dreams and what had happened the night of Halloween. Darien didn't leave anything out. He didn't even leave out the part where he could actually talk to spirits and the soul of Draco Malfoy who was still trapped inside the Dementor that attacked Darien.

"So that's about it." Darien said with a shrug. Harry continued to stare then narrowed his eyes a little. "Why haven't you told your father? Why haven't you told anyone?" He asked. Darien dropped his head. "I didn't want them to worry. I have enough going on as it is. Whitman is always calling me teacher's pet and saying that I get more attention than I should." He said. Harry shook his head slowly. "Darien, those are only words. They mean nothing." He said. Darien sighed deeply.

"Harry, think of what would happen if I told my mom. She would freak out for god sakes." He said. Harry smirked a little. "You really to stop hanging out with Sirius so much." He shook his head again. "Darien, this is some serious stuff. I really think you should talk to Dumbledore about your dreams." He said. Darien shook his head sharply. "No! If they knew that I could see Salazar Slytherin and maybe a werewolf like dad, what would happen? It's scaring me, Harry! I'd be hated by Hagrid." He said looking very scared.

Harry reached over and touched his shoulder. "Darien, if you did kill Fang, it wouldn't have been your fault. It was your first time changing. I don't understand the werewolf curse very much, Darien. Not like Remus but you have got take action. If there is a dangerous creature in this castle, we need to alert the teachers. We can find it. And Hagrid would not hate you if you told him the truth." He said. Darien was looking very desperate.

"Harry! Please don't tell mom or dad. Or anyone. I want to try and find out what the Umbra is. You would do the same thing as I am, right?" He asked. Harry didn't say anything. He just looked very annoyed. He gave a long frustrated sigh. "Yes I would. I did it all the time when I was your age." He said.

Darien nodded. "And I swear if anything gets worst than it has already, I will tell everyone." He said. Harry nodded. "You better. Now that you've brought me into the light, I think I might check some records at the Ministry. See if I can track down the name Umbra." He said. Slytherin gave a nod as he stopped pacing. "That's a good idea." He said. Darien looked up at him and nodded. "Slytherin says that's a very good idea." He told him. Harry looked over to where Darien was looking.

"So, Salazar Slytherin's ghost is standing in this very room?" he asked. Darien nodded. "Yeah. He's right there." He said nodding to Slytherin. Harry folded his arms. "Salazar Slytherin, huh? The first dark wizard of Hogwarts?" He asked. Slytherin was eyeing Harry with distaste. "Tell him he better shut his mouth." He warned Darien. Darien winced and looked at Harry. "He says you better shut up now." Harry folded his arms before looking towards the ghost even if he couldn't see him. "Hey, Slytherin. I do have one thing to say. Thanks for setting your damn snake on my friends in my second year. Too bad for you, I stabbed it in the head."

Slytherin snorted again. "That blasted Basilisk wasn't mine. I didn't put it in the chamber. I placed something else down there. Someone else put that thing in there." He said. Darien stared at him. "You didn't put the Basilisk in the chamber? Well, who did?" He asked. Harry stared at his best friend's son. Slytherin shrugged and waved the question away.

"So, why is he helping you? I thought he didn't like Gryffindors or half bloods and such." He said. Slytherin snorted. "You got me there, Potter. I don't. But if there was something I hated more it would be Umbra." He said. Darien frowned. "Hey, I'm half blood. So why are you helping me?" He asked. Slytherin looked at him. "I'm not doing it for you, boy. I'm doing to get Umbra back. I couldn't care less about you, Gryffindors." He said. Harry was looking at Darien with a skeptical look but didn't say anything. He didn't know what Slytherin was saying but he could tell it wasn't very pleasant.

Darien narrowed his eyes at the crude ghost. "What do you have against Umbra, anyway? Why don't you just tell me who he is and what he is?" He asked. Slytherin stood motionless. "Because it is my business. You can find out the answers for yourself. I gave you the book." He said. Darien rolled his eyes. "I've read this book over a hundred times. There is nothing on Umbra." He said. Slytherin looked very annoyed now.

"Then you are not looking hard enough, boy!" he exclaimed. Darien stood up. "My name is Darien not boy! Will you please stop calling me boy! And if he's mentioned in the book then show me!" he said. Slytherin growled lowly. The air seemed to get a little colder and the candles that were lit flickered. Harry had even noticed. "Darien, you better not be pissing him off. I don't think that would be a good idea." He said. Slytherin stomped forward and rose his hand above the book. The book flipped open making Harry start. The pages began to flip very quickly that if Darien or Harry would have tried to stop the pages they would get series of paper cuts. They finally stopped. "Right there!" Slytherin growled as he pointed at a paragraph. Darien leaned closer and looked to where he was pointing.

_The founders of Hogwarts were great friends until Salazar Slytherin began to show a change of heart. He began to be colder to his friends as they taught the first students of Hogwarts. The three Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff did not understand it why Slytherin was acting the way he had. But in the diary of Rowena Ravenclaw, it states she had once seen Salazar Slytherin speaking to the shadows of the dungeons or to a gargoyle the four had known was called Caligo._

_After a few years, Gryffindor and Slytherin began to argue about the way Slytherin was behaving to them. And Slytherin had an outburst about his belief in that three other Founders were going to betray him. It was only then, Slytherin left Hogwarts and was never seen again. _

Darien stared at the paragraphs then looked at Slytherin. "What happened? Why did you guys break your friendship?" he asked. Slytherin spun away from the table and walked a ways from them. Harry was still looking at the pages. "You will find out sooner or later. I can not say." Slytherin said. Darien narrowed his eyes. "Why?" He asked. Slytherin turned around looking him right in the eyes. The candle lights began to flicker again. The three looked around. Slytherin narrowed his eyes. "Because Umbra is here. Right now. He is watching you right now. Watching us speak." He said. Darien looked around. "He's here?" he asked.

Harry stood as the candles blew out and went for his wand. "What's going on, Darien?" he asked softly. Darien looked at him. "Slytherin says Umbra is here. He's watching us." He said. Harry jerked his head looking around for anyone. "Where?" He asked seriously. Slytherin slowly looked around at the dark corners. "He is all around us. In the shadows. He always is." He said. Darien swallowed hard. "He said that Umbra is all around us. In the shadows. He's looking at the dark corners." He said. Harry looked towards the dark corners. "I don't see anything. Do you?" he asked. Darien looked up and didn't see anything himself. "No." He said. Slytherin shook his head.

"You better go back to your House tower, boy. You will be safer there for the night." He said. Darien nodded swallowing hard grabbing the book. He began to back out of the library. Harry did the same. Slytherin stepped in front of them. "Don't worry. He's not going after you right now. He's just sitting there. Go." He said. Darien nodded, turning around. He hurried out with Harry behind him.

They stepped out of the library. Harry still had his wand out. "Darien, you sure you know what your doing?" he asked. Darien hugged the book closer. "I hope so, Harry. I really do hope so." He said. Harry blew out a long breath. "Alright. If you find anything, keep me posted. I won't tell anyone right now but if it gets too deep, we're letting your parents know, including Dumbledore." He said. Darien nodded. "Got it." he told him. Harry sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. "Either way, there's something wicked in Hogwarts that shouldn't be here." He said. Darien nodded.

Darien continued to do research in the book Slytherin had given him. He still couldn't see what he was looking for. He knew it had to have something but he couldn't find it. His friends were always trying to figure out what he was looking for in the book but he wouldn't say. He just told them he was just doing a bit of light reading. But they knew something was up. Because he was reading the book over and over again.

"I wish you would just tell us what's on your mind, Darien. Why are you always reading Hogwarts, A history over and over, and over, and over..." Lionel kept on repeating that is until Sam came up and slapped the back of his head. "Shut up, Lionel. We get the idea." She said sitting down. She looked over at Darien. "But seriously, why are you reading that book all the time?" She asked with interest. Darien just stared at his food. "It's...interesting. I just like it." He said. Rex stared. "That book...is interesting? I tried reading that thing. It's not that interesting to read over fifty times." He said. Darien faintly smiled.

"Actually to tell you the truth, I've read it a hundred and twenty times." He said. All of them stared with wide eyes. "Okay, now that's freaky." Sam said. She shook her head. "Darien, we're just a little concerned. That's all." She told him. Darien blew out a frustrated sigh. "Look, there's nothing going on. Hogwarts, A history is my favorite book. That's all. Just cut me some slack!" He stood and left.

Darien and his new found friends were having a small time out from each other for a while. They were a little mad at him. Darien just kept on reading through the book. A few times he spotted Slytherin wandering around watching him closely. It was more like he was guarding Darien. His eyes always glaring at the shadows. And what made more things interesting was Darien had seen the new Divination teacher a lot in the Library when he was in. There was something about that guy that Darien didn't like. He wasn't sure what it was.

He remembered seeing him at the beginning of the year but that was actually the only time he had seen him. Ever since the first of the year he hadn't ever seen the Professor again until a week after he began his research through Slytherin's book. The man was always in the library now. The very same time Darien was. And a few times he glanced at Darien from his little desk and then smiled as if greeting him. Darien would immediately look away.

The even more weirder thing was, Slytherin's wand didn't seem to like the Divination teacher either. Sometimes when the teacher was close by, the S on the handle would start glowing a fiery and angry red. Darien wasn't sure why it did that.

The winter was coming quickly. The ground was full of frost by then. And Darien was feeling sick again. He was sure it had to deal with the full moon coming up. No matter how much he tried to shove the thoughts out of his mind, he could not help but think that he……that he was a werewolf. The thoughts just haunted him terribly. And worst, Remus was catching on.


	10. Chapter 9

A/N: Hey, everyone. I'm back. Sorry it took me so long. This chapter is going to be a little weird but it is sort of important for later chapters. In this chapter, Darien is going to have another dream and again, transform into what he doesn't want to be. R&R

**Chapter 9.**

It was only two days before the full moon. Darien was feeling ill again. And again Lionel and Rex were noticing. They would talk in whispers about it. They didn't know what was going on with their new friend. They would sometimes trail behind Darien watching closely, making sure nothing was going to happen to him. And they weren't the only ones. Remus had been sensing something about Darien through his lycan senses. And he would start to worry when Darien would have a pained look on his face. He continued to watch his son more closely than he had before. But he knew that he couldn't watch him 24-7 like he wanted to. So he asked someone else to do it.

"I don't know, Remus. Don't you think Darien would be a little upset if he found out that you asked me to tail behind him day and night?" Sirius asked rubbing his head. Remus was looking out the window at the grounds where he could see Darien flipping through the book he was always carrying around. "Sirius, there is something wrong with my son. I can smell it on him. He's scared about something. I can smell the fear and anxiety on him. And he's not telling me. Or anyone for that matter." He said. Sirius shook his head. "I think you might be overdoing it, Moony." Remus sighed looking at him. "Come on, Sirius. Please just do this. I'm starting to worry about Darien. There is something wrong with him." He said weakly. Sirius couldn't really stand seeing Remus like this. He sighed shaking his head. He stood and touched Remus' shoulder. "Alright. I still think this is a bad idea. He finds out that we have been spying on him……" He was cut off.

"We're not spying, Sirius. We're just….watching him more closely. Just in case something is wrong." Remus said. Sirius smirked shaking his head. "Remus, it's called spying." He said. Remus rolled his eyes. "Whatever." Sirius chuckled as he looked out the window. "Just please, my friend. Find out what is wrong." Remus said softly. Sirius nodded. "Don't worry. I will. But I still think it's just nightmares about that stupid Dementor. Those things still give me the nightmares." He shuddered at the idea. Remus just smirked.

And as Remus asked, Sirius was watching Darien more closely. Darien never noticed. He just smiled and waved at Sirius as the caretaker pretend to be working. Sirius would wave back with a smile. And he did notice that Darien did have a new type of behavior. He was having a few mood swings. And Sirius remembered those too well when Remus had them. And still had them.

The day of the full moon came and Darien was feeling too ill to get up to go to classes that day. So with permission he stayed in the dorms and slept. Unfortunately, his dreams were haunting him more and more. But this time, they were much different. He wasn't dreaming about himself. He was dreaming about something else. Darien dreamed that he was someone else. He was a tall young man wearing green robes and a black cloak. They were very similar to what Slytherin wore. He had short slick back black hair with a few bangs falling over his eyes. He was quite handsome and maybe the age of 28. His eyes were hauntingly dark.

But the feeling inside was so much opposite than Darien usually felt. His feelings were dark. He felt very cranky and high strung. He didn't like the way he was feeling. But there was another feeling. He felt….anxious. Darien was walking down the dark stone corridors of some kind castle. Maybe it was Hogwarts but he wasn't sure. He kept glancing over his shoulder as if looking for someone who was following him. But no one was there. So he would walk on. Darien was confused but he couldn't find himself to stopping. It was like he was a whole different person. He came to a door way and Darien definitely wanted to stop. But he couldn't. The man in his dreams, himself, was entering the girl's bathroom. He walked in looking around then moved over to the sinks. He bent down beside one of the faucets and there he could see a small figure of a snake. Darien would have gasped but he couldn't. Instead he opened his mouth and said, open. But the words he spoke…….they were in a different language. It sounded like a snake whispering. Then he stepped back as the sinks began to move and roll away. Revealing a long dark passage going down.

Darien found himself walking forward and looked down. There was an old ladder there. He began to climb down. Deeper and deeper he went down into the darkness. The area around him growing darker. He finally made it to the bottom of the ladder and turned around. He was looking into a dark tunnel. A large pipe. He walked forward and followed it.

Deeper and deeper he went. Water now running down the walls. It was dark and dank. Darien felt very uneasy now. He even glanced around as if looking for something. Then he came to a large stone door with stone snakes embredded in it. Darien felt his eyes narrow. "Open." He spoke again and he spoke in a snake's voice. The snakes snapped and the door slowly crept open allowing him to enter. He walked forward and past the door waving a hand and the door closed behind him. Darien walked into a darker chamber and then stopped. If he really was in control his eyes would have went wide. He was looking in a large chamber. Stone snake heads lined up in water. It was the Chamber of Secrets. 

The man, Darien was in, smirked and walked forward. His eyes looking straight at the large head. He stopped at the edge of the water surrounded the head and looked up into those eyes. He just stood there until he felt eyes on him. He slowly turned around and looked around.  
"Umbra?" He called. There was a small dark chuckle in the darkness and the flutter of leathery wings. A dark figure flew down from above and landed right in front of Darien still in the shadows. It stood tall. It's wings folded on it's back. It's peircing red eyes on him. "Slytherin, you have once again returned to the chamber. Good. How are things going topside?" The dark voice of the gargoyle asked. Slytherin narrowed his eyes.

"What was the meaning of showing yourself and scaring Rowena! I thought you were going to stay down here in the safety of my chamber!" He snapped. Umbra smirked as he stepped into the light of the torches. Darien would have let out a yell of shock. The face of the creature was horrible. It was flat and looked almost like a bat's. But two horns crowned around it's head. It was like a demon's. The creature didn't look like any gargoyle Darien had ever seen. It looked more like a demon. It even had a forked tail.

"I was only playing, Salazar. I did not mean to frighten your poor beloved away." He sneered. Slytherin growled lowly. "We had a deal, Umbra. You would stay out of sight as long as I protected you from them. Do you wish for Godric to find out about you!" he growled.  
A serious look formed on Umbra's face. He looked menacing. "Slytherin, if you wish for me to help you, then I would not threaten me. You must not get involved with Rowena. She is Gryffindor's lover not yours. I have told you time and time again, Rowena is using you to find out your secrets. Our secrets. You must not let her do such a thing. You must push her away."  
Slytherin felt hurt. He refused to believe that Rowena would do such a thing. "No, she loves me. We even made love under the full moon….." Umbra shook his head. "No, Slytherin. You are letting her run you. She is only using you. They will betray you, Slytherin. And you are letting them. You must attack back. You must take order." He told him. Slytherin turned away. 

A shiver ran through him. He felt hurt. He felt used and beatened. He lowered his head looking into the water. "What shall I do? I can not hurt her. I love her." Umbra stepped closer and placed a claw on Slytherin's shoulder. "I know, Salazar. But you must accept it. The only way of winning her, is to kill Godric Gryffindor." Then he sneered.

Sharp pain filled Darien. He gasped as his eyes shot open and grabbed his chest. The fire was in his skin again. Just like Halloween night. He felt the intense heat inside him and around him. The pain in his chest. Darien flipped over and fell off the bed onto his knees. He clenched his teeth trying to hold it in. His multicolored eyes looked straight out the window. It was dark outside so he had been sleeping the whole day. There was no one in their room. Everyone was still at dinner. So no one could hear Darien letting out yells of pain. He staggered to his feet and went to the window looking out. The full moon shone right back at him. He felt himself changing again. Just like what happened Halloween night. 

Just then Slytherin appeared in thin air and looked down at the changing Darien. "My, my. No wonder Umbra is so interested in you. You are a werewolf." Darien jerked his head around but it wasn't his face. He was transforming. Slytherin shook his head. "You better get outside, boy. Some Gryffindor students are coming and you don't want them to see a large werewolf in here." He told him. Darien let out a howl of pain and then turned. He jumped onto the dresser as his cloths started to rip then he smashed right out the window. Slytherin moved over to the window and looked out. He watched Darien fall from the hundred feet below. But he landed on his feet and ran into the darkness.

The old founder shook his head. "A young and newly werewolf should not run loose on the grounds of this school." He turned and grabbed a picture off of Darien's dresser then floated out.

Remus was chatting with Sirius over dinner. Some of the students were already leaving to go to bed. But there was still several others who were sticking around. The other teachers were talking to each other. "My, is Professor Caligo not coming down again? That poor man. Why does he stay up in the Divination tower all the time?" McGonagall asked. Another professor shook her head. "I do not know. That man is such a strange one." She said. Sirius shrugged as he heard the women. "Professor Watson is right though. Why does Caligo stay up there?" He asked Remus who shrugged. "I'm not sure. But what he does is not our business. It is in his contract that we butt out of what he does." Remus said taking a bite of his fook.

Suddenly something dropped from above and fell right before Remus. Whatever it had been, there was glass. Because glass went flying. Both Remus and Sirius jerk back to avoid shards. Several heads turned to see what was wrong. "What in bloody hell!" Sirius exclaimed as he carefully brushed tiny shards off his face being careful not to cut himself. Remus looked at what it was and his eyes widen. It was a picture of himself, Darien and Hermione. He quickly looked up to see who had dropped it. "What the! Peeves been stealing things again?" Sirius growled with annoyance. Remus looked back at the picture then reached for it when a strange feeling came over him. It was like someone had just blew cold air on the back of his neck.

"…..Darrien…….trouble….." He heard a faint whisper in his ear. Remus' eyes widen and he knew. His mouth fell and the blood drained from his face. Sirius looked at him with surprise. "Remus? Remus, are you alright?" He asked. Faces looked their way. Dumbledore leaned forward. "Remus, is there something wrong?" He asked.

And as if Dumbedore's voice brought him back to reality, Remus leaped to his feet. "Darien!" He yelled. People jumped hearing him yell. But Remus didn't waste any moment to explain. Instead he jumped up onto the table and then down and dashed towards the doors. The teachers were in shock. Sirius transformed into his dog form immediately and ran after Remus. Some students stood and started talking at once. Dumbedore looked at the other teachers with a serious and understanding look. "Heads of each houses, please gather each of your houses and keep them in here. No one is to leave this room." The teachers all nodded and stood. Several of them went to the tables and told them they were not to leave.

Remus and Sirius ran so fast up towards the Gryffindor tower as fast as their feet would take them. Sirius was a little ahead since he was in his dog form. They reached the Fat Lady's portrait. "Please move! It is an emergency!" Remus gasped. The Fat Lady swung open letting the two rush in without question. Remus dashed towards the boy's dorms. "Darien!" He yelled. He and Sirius looked around and then their eyes froze on the shattered window. Sirius transformed back into his human form, his eyes wild. "Werewolf, Remus. There is a werewolf scent in here. And it's Darien." Remus looked very upset and angry. "Damn it! I just knew this was going to happen!" He exclaimed. He looked at Sirius. "Sirius, run to Dumbledore and the other teachers! I have to go after Darien now." He said hurrying back out. Sirius nodded and transformed again. Both of them rushed out.

Remus rushed out of the castle, undoing his shirt. He couldn't transform just yet, even though the full moon was out. He pulled his shirt off and then transformed into the werewolf. He sniffed the air trying to catch Darien's scent. He found it quickly. The trail was heading towards Hogsmead. Remus started to run as fast as he could towards the village.

Sirius rushed back into the Great Hall and ran straight up to the teachers to Dumbledore. He transformed and gave them a grave look. "It's Darien." He said. The teachers looked at each other. Lionel and Rex heard what he said. They looked at each other.

In the village, there was a drunk staggering out of The Hogs Head. He had way too much fire whiskey that night and he was definitely seeing double. He staggered down the path getting ready to disapparate to go home, even though he shouldn't, when he heard growling. He turned and squinted his eyes. What he saw was a large brown dog. But if he wasn't so drunk he would have seen it was a snarling young werewolf.  
"Aw, what a cute doggy. Come here, boy. Does the little doggy want something to chew on." The drunk teased pulling out a newspaper from his robes. The young werewolve's eyes gleamed and it snarled making the man jump and step back. It didn't take a genius to tell that this thing was going to attack. The young werewolf charged. "Oh, shit." The man said stumbling back. He rose an arm to shield himself. The werewolf started to lunge still snarling. But there was an angry howl and something even bigger crashed right into the younger werewolf knocking him aside. The drunk sat up and looked around with fear. Several of the villagers had heard the commotion and came out to investigate. They all gasped or cried out when the saw two wolves fighting. 

A larger one was trying to pin the smaller and younger one down. The young werewolf was clawing and biting at the older one trying to get loose. But the bigger one was just way too strong for him. It had him pinned which wasn't very easy.

Finally the young werewolf managed to wriggle out of the older werewolve's grasp and started to run down the street. But the older one took off after him. They ran through Hogsmeade, scaring a few of the villagers. The younger one would try and attack another villager but the older one kept crashing into him as it stopped. It was only an hour of the chase, the younger one decided to turn around and fight back. But that was because it had been cornered in an ally. The older wolf just growled as he faced the younger one. Then he transformed right before him. Remus stood up straight, his pants still in contact, to his relief. He grabbed his wand that was still in his pocket and aimed. A hurt and upset look on his face. "Darien….." He paused shaking his head. "Your mother is going to kill me." He gave his wand a flick and yelled, "Stupify!" The red sparks shot out from his wand and hit the younger werewolf. With a loud painful yipe, the young werewolf fell over and was unconscious. Remus sighed lowering his wand.

"Damn it. I did not want this to happen to you." He said weakly. He stuffed his wand back into his pocket making sure it was tucked in and transformed into his wolf form again. He went over to the smaller werewolf and wrapped his jaws around the scruff of it's neck lifting it up from the ground. He turned and dashed back down the street, heading back towards Hogwarts.


	11. Chapter 10

A/N: Hey, everyone. Sorry for the very, very, very long wait. lol. I was having minor technical difficulties with the computer. Anyway, here's the next chapter after such a long wait. So, enjoy.

Chapter 10.

Darien's head was pounding. He was aching all over. He wasn't sure what happened but he was sure he had an idea. He gave a low groan as he reached up and rubbed his head. He could hear voices in the room. One sounded very angry. The other upset. And another trying to calm the angry one down. Darien couldn't make out the words just yet. His eyes slowly opened but his vision was blurry. He couldn't tell where he was at first. He could feel the soft bed under him and the warm blanket on top of him. Darien yawned and stretched as he tried to sit up.

"I wouldn't do that." He heard. He jumped and looked around.

Standing in the corner stood Slytherin. His arms were folded against his transparent chest. He was smiling. Not smirking or looking grumpy but smiling. "Well, well, well. You've finally awaken. You must feel very sore after that fight last night." He said. Darien gave him a questioning look. He opened his mouth to say something but his throat ached so much. But Slytherin understood what he was trying to say. "You turned, boy. You are a werewolf. Just like your father." He told him. Darien's eyes lit up and he looked shocked. It was like someone cast an ice spell all around him. His heart was thumping harder against his chest and panic was swelling up inside. "D-did I kill anyone?" He whispered not wanting to catch the arguing people's attention, the ones standing outside the curtains drawn around his bed. Slytherin shook his head. "By what I have heard, you almost attacked a villager in Hogsmeade, but your father stopped you." He tilted his head with an amused smirk. "The hard way." He shrugged.

The 11 year old gave a groan and grabbed his pillow. He covered his head with it and began swearing into it. "Just look at it this way, at least your father got to you first before Umbra did. He was going after you when you changed. He wanted to try and control you." He heard Slytherin say. Darien pushed the pillow off his head. "Oh, great. More good news." He growled. Slytherin shrugged. "I did warn you, boy. Umbra wants to use you like he used me in the past." That made Darien remember something. "Wait…..the dream…..I…" He paused. Slytherin stared at him. "What dream?" Darien rubbed his head. "I had a strange dream before I changed……it……I can't remember." He said shaking his head. Slytherin stepped closer. "Try, boy. Try to remember. What dream? Did it have to do with Umbra?" He asked. Darien shook his head straining to remember. "I….I don't remember." He squinted his eyes.

An image flashed across his memory. An image of a demon looking creature. It's piercing red eyes on him. And it's cruel smile. He remembered cold its voice was. He just couldn't remember exactly what he said. Only the last three words. 'Kill Godric Gryffindor'. Darien looked at Slytherin with shock. He looked at him with complete disbelief. Slytherin stared at him with a small amount of confusion. He was wondering why the boy was looking at him like that. "What is it?" He asked. Darien shook his head.

Before he could say anything, the curtains slid aside and in came The Lupins, Sirius and Dumbledore. Darien looked at them with surprise but then lowered his head. He had noticed that Slytherin dematerialized before they came in. Hermione looked surprised to see Darien awake but relieved. She quickly hurried forward and wrapped him in her arms. "Darien, thank goodness." She said sounding very emotional. Darien hugged her back. "Mom? What are you doing here?" He asked. Hermione pulled away now giving him a stern look. "Darien, before I answer that, why didn't you tell your father about you being ill?" She asked seriously. Darien looked away. "I….I just…." He sighed. "I guess I was scared. I didn't know what was happening. I only thought it was a fever." He looked back at her. "I'm sorry."

Hermione sighed shaking her head. She closed her eyes before hugging him again. "I swear, Darien Fenrir Lupin. You are going to give me an early grave some day." She told him. Remus sat on the other side of him and touched the scratch on his cheek. "Do you remember what happened?" He asked. Darien shook his head. "Only that I woke up from a nightmare by feeling pain. What's happening, dad?" He asked. Remus sighed looking at Dumbledore. Dumbledore looked back then nodded. "You have inherited your father's lycanthropy trait. You are just like your father, a werewolf. We should have expected this. But the question leads to why you never told us of your illnesses. If you would have, we would have prevented a few things that has happened." He said. Darien lowered his head.

"I know. I was just scared. After Hagrid's dog, Fang, was killed I sort of became suspicious. I didn't tell because I didn't want anyone to know. I was afraid that if anyone knew I….I…." Remus understood. "You believed your friends would have deserted you." He said looking at Sirius who looked back. Darien nodded. "Well, no one really knows about your new trait and they will not know. Only the teachers and the staff. But we must take great caution now. Your father is able to control his werewolf side but you are not. So once month you will take the wolfsbane potion and will have to be closely watched." Dumbledore told him. The 11 year old just nodded looking glum. Remus patted his son's shoulder.

"In the mean time, Remus," Dumbledore said. Remus looked up at him. "You will have to teach Darien more about the werewolf than you have already." The Headmaster said. Remus nodded. "Alright. I was really hoping that this wouldn't have happened but I suppose it was unavoidable." He said. Hermione took Darien's hand and held it. "And as for the day, you may rest, Darien." Dumbledore said. Darien nodded laying back.

As Dumbledore turned to leave, someone stepped into curtains. "I beg your pardon, Headmaster. I was in the infirmary when I overheard a few things that was said." The Divination teacher said. Everyone looked up at him. He was looking at Darien with great interest. "Ah, Professor Caligo. What can I do for you?" Dumbledore asked. The Professor continued to look at Darien with a smile. "Well, like I have said, I overheard a little of your conversation. Young Lupin mentioned he had a nightmare, is that correct?" He asked. Everyone looked at him. "Yeah." Darien said uneasily. Professor Caligo nodded. "Ah," He paused squinting his eyes before looking at Remus. "Being the Divination teacher I should have spoke with you awhile ago. I am at a fault and I wish to ask for you forgive me." He said. Remus stared at him with confusion as did the others. "What do you mean, Caligo?" He asked. Professor Caligo sighed shaking his head. He had a guilty look on his face.

"I was aware of your son's…..condition, Lupin. I have foreseen it and I should have told you before it happened. Ever since Hagrid's dog died, I have taken the liberty of looking in my crystal ball lately and have seen who killed it. It was your son. And I should have informed you right away but I was really not sure if it was true or not. Because even some readings could be misleading. And then what happened last night I knew that it was not just some coincidence. I should have told you and I am completely sorry."

Everyone stared at the Divination teacher. Dumbledore nodded softly. "I see, Caligo. And why do you ask about young Darien's dream?" he asked. Caligo looked back at Darien with interest again. "Well, I am the Divination teacher, Headmaster. I am clearly interested in hearing about it." He said. Hermione glanced at Darien who was looking very uneasy now.

"I see, Caligo. Of course, you know that it may just be a dream and mean nothing." Sirius said. Caligo nodded. "Ah, but you must remember. It could mean something. All dreams have a meaning. They are either a memory of your past, or could be a prediction. Dreams are very important in the art of Divination. Especially when they are the dreams of a young wizard like Darien." He said. Hermione shook her head. "Even so, Professor, that does make sense. But there couldn't be a chance that Darien could have the art of Divination yet. He is way too young and will not start Divination until his third year." She said. Caligo nodded. "I do understand that, Mrs. Lupin. But….." He paused looking at Darien. "I can see your son's divination ability for Divination has developed rather quickly. His greatest strength, I can already see, is Divination. He already possesses the inner eye."

Everyone's eyes went straight to Darien with surprise. "Are you sure, Professor Caligo?" Dumbledore asked. Caligo nodded. "I am sure of it. Please, tell me, Young Lupin. What is your dreams of?" He asked. Darien opened his mouth but nothing came out. He shook his head. "I don't….I really don't remember, Professor. I swear." He said. Caligo nodded. "What about the one before? When the Dementor attacked you?" He asked. Everyone looked at him. "Caligo, that is going too far." Sirius spoke sharply. Darien just looked shocked. How did he know about the dream? Caligo ignored Sirius. "You heard Draco Malfoy speak in your dream, did you not?" He asked. All three Darien, Remus and Sirius held their breath. Hermione was looking at each one. Darien stared at the teacher with a gaping mouth. "How about the Shadow man, Darien? Tell me about him." Caligo asked.

"Caligo, would you please not badger Darien about this right now! He's still trying to….." Sirius was demanding. But Darien cut him off. "How did you know?" he asked. Everyone looked right at him. "Darien?" Hermione asked. Caligo nodded. "Just as I thought. Please. Tell us about it." He said. Darien looked down at his lap. He wasn't sure how this man knew about that dream.

"Boy." He heard.

He looked up and past Caligo. Slytherin was standing behind him. He was staring at Caligo with a dark look. There was confusion but distrust in his eyes. "Don't tell him." He said strictly. "Darien, what dream is he talking about?" Hermione asked. Darien looked at her. He shook his head. "I don't know." Dumbledore was watching carefully. He looked at Caligo. "Let us not talk about this right now, Caligo. Young Lupin must rest. He is very weary from his adventure last night." He said. Caligo looked slightly disappointed but he smiled to cover it up. "Very well, Headmaster." He turned his eyes onto Darien and nodded. "If you ever have the need to talk about your dreams, Young Master Lupin, I am willing to listen." He told him. Darien just nodded slowly. "I'll keep that in mind." Caligo nodded and turned to leave pausing once as he looked to his left. And Darien swore that the Professor was looking straight at Slytherin before he left.

He looked at his parents who were talking with Sirius. Hermione was watching her son though. She still had tears in her eyes from the worry. She was still scared for her son knowing what was in store for him. She remembered all the things Remus had told her about changing into the werewolf. She knew things for her son were going to get very tough. And she was dead scared for him.

Dumbledore looked at Darien before smiling. "Well, Darien, we shall let you get some more sleep. Your parents will still be around by the time you wake again. Before I leave..." He paused looking the boy directly in the eye. "Is there anything you wish to say? Anything you need to tell me or your parents?" He asked. Darien looked around at all of the adults watching him. He knew he should tell them about the threat that might have been at the castle but he couldn't bring himself to say anything. Something was holding him back. He also wanted to find out on his own. He would tell them if things did get any worst than they were already. So Darien Fenrir Lupin looked right at Dumbledor and shook his head. "No sir. Nothing." he said. Dumbledore eyed him for a minute then nodded slowly. He had the look as if he knew something. He reached over and patted the young Lupin's arm gently. "Get some rest, Darien." Then he turned and walked out. Everyone but Remus, Sirius and Hermione left.

Remus patted his son's shoulder. "Don't worry, D. We'll get through this together. In the mean time, get some sleep." He said. Hermione nodded as she took her son's hand. Darien laid back still holding her hand. "Okay, dad." He closed his eyes and pretended to go to sleep. He just listened to the adults talk. "I'm worried, Remus, about our son. Something's not right at Hogwarts. I can feel it." Hermione whispered. Sirius was pacing. "Swiftstar, he'll be fine. Dumbledore and I will be watching him and nothing will happen to our son." Remus said. Hermione softly stroked her son's bangs. "I know but still I'm worried. What dream was Caligo talking about? And there is no way Darien could have the inner eye at his age. Not to mention, why would he have it at all? You and I both never did." She said. Sirius stopped pacing. "What if you did but it was never active?" He asked. The Lupins looked at their friend. "What? How could that be possible?" Hermione asked. Sirius shook his head. "Well, Darien is your son, Herms. You both had to have the art of Divination but it never worked for you. So what if you just passed it onto Darien?" He asked.

Remus rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He slowly nodded. "That indeed is a thought, Sirius. I suppose it could have happened." He then blinked. A surprised look on his face as if something just happened. "Oh..." Both Hermione and Sirius looked at him. "Remus? What is it?" His wife asked. Remus just stared off until Sirious shook him. "Moony, what's wrong?" He asked. The elder Lupin shook his head. "I think I've figured something out. But I'm going to look into is first before I tell you about it. I just want to make sure I'm wrong." he said. Hermione sighed softly. She hated it when Remus hid things from her. But she knew it was probably for the good or for the safety of everyone. "All right, Remus. But I expect answers later." She said, poking his chest with her finger. Remus nodded. "Let's go get something to eat. Dari will be fine in here." He said. The other two nodded and left.

Darien opened his eyes as soon as they were gone only to see Slytherin standing right there giving him a look. "Faking sleep is surely not good for your health, you know." He scolded. Darien rolled his eyes and sat up. "Since when did you care about Half bloods?" He asked Slytherin rolled his own eyes before folding his arms. "I don't. But I do care about paying Umbra back. And if he's trying to get control over you, then I'm going to make sure he doesn't get what he wants." He said. Darien gave him a curious look. "I need to know more than you have been telling me, Slytherin. Tell about Umbra." He said. Slytherin stared coldly at him. He was quiet for a long time. Then he turned and walked to the window. He stared outside.

"I met Umbra along time ago, boy (he ignored the look Darien gave him). I was a young lad. I think he's a demon of some kind. He never told me what he was. He was always remained in the shadows as if it was some kind of shelter to him. He never came out of the darkness. I met him before I became a founder of Hogwarts. Before I even helped come up with the idea of making a school.

"We used to talk of many things. My past, spells and magic I made up. I even told him about how I fell in love with Rowena Ravenclaw. He told me if I wanted her, I should have her. So I tried to court her. Godric Gryffindor thought we would make a great pair, Rowena and I. Helga Hufflepuff just thought I was sweet." He pulled a face making Darien crack a smile. The grumpy ghost gave him a dark look as if daring him to laugh. When Darien didn't laugh, he went on. "It was Umbra who hinted that we should start a school for magic. To teach children what they could do. I passed the idea onto my colleagues and so we began building the castle. I built my own chamber just so Umbra could live in the darkness."

Darien stared at his lap as he knew what chamber Slytherin was talking about. It didn't take a genius to figure it out. He looked at him. "The Chamber of Secrets." He said. Slytherin nodded. Darien tilted his head. "And that's the monster everyone was talking about. The one that you placed in the chamber. It was Umbra. He was the dark creature you hid deep within the castle. Not the baskilisk." He said. Again Slytherin nodded.

"The others didn't know about it because Umbra wanted to stay a secret. He didn't want them to know that he was living in the castle as well. We continued to build the castle. Never knowing that Umbra had his own plans. It took many years to build Hogwarts. Even using magic. We placed spells on the castle to keep from prying eyes of muggles. Even back then magic was frowned upon. Muggles never did understand the beauty of magic. They were afraid of us. Believing we would use our magic to destroy them. Eventually I did want to. But Godric, Rowena and Helga would always stop me from harming them." He shook his head. "Once we finished building the castle, making it to our own standards and likings, we began finding students to teach. Most of them were purebloods. Not many were Half bloods or Muggleborns. We brought them to Hogwarts to teach. However, we came to a problem. Each student had their own personalities and traits. Some were too friend. Some were highly intelligent. Others were braver than the rest. And some were ambitious and liked only purebloods like I did. Above all, the students didn't want to learn their lessons with some of the others. They really disliked each other."

Slytherin looked back out the window. His transparent hand rubbed the beard on his chin. Darien was still sitting quietly and listening intentively. He was learning some serious history about Hogwarts. Something that even some of the teachers didn't even know about. He wondered if any of the teachers did. "So you made the sorting hat?" He asked. Slytherin turned around and nodded at him. "Yes. It was Godric's idea of course. He was very intelligent, though he had more bravery than all of us put together. He took his hat off his head and we all cursed it. Put apart of ourselves inside it. Our minds, memories, our very own magical essence inside it. And then we brought the thing to life. We took the hat and placed it on each of the students' heads. And the very first sorting began. We used the sorting hat to pick our children and we taught them." The ghost's face turned agitated after that. A disgusted look on his face. He was remembering bad things now. Darien was watching with curiousity. He could see the ghost's eyes were growing darker by the minute. "What happened after that?" He asked. Slytherin looked at him and frowned.

"Umbra began showing his true colors. Pitch black. While we were teaching our students, he was sneaking around at night filling the children's heads with horrible dreams. I think he feasted on fear. He also began telling me things that angered me. He was very manipulative, boy. He knew my weaknesses. He knew how to use me. And so he began to control me using words. He created the first Imperius Curse. He was filling my head with it. I used his words to create that very curse. Along with the other curses. The Cruciatus Curse, the Imperius and even the Avada Kedavra." He shook his head. "He turned me against the ones I knew best. The ones I called friends. I trusted them until Umbra began saying things. He made me see lies." He scowled. "And now I am cursed until his powers are destroyed. Until he is no longer in Hogwarts. He must be stopped before he carries out his plans. The ones he has been planning for one thousand years."

Darien blinked a few times. "And what is his plan?" He asked. Slytherin frowned even deeper and looked the boy directly in the eye. "His plan is just the same as Tom Riddle's. To take over the magical world. To make the world into his own liking. Only Umbra doesn't want to create a pureblood world. No, he wants to douse the entire world into darkness. He thrives on darkness, Lupin. Craves for it. Loves it. it is his paradise. And he wants to create Hell on Earth. No one will be able to hide from him. Not when they're in the dark." He said. Darien almost shuddered at the cold tone in Slytherin's voice. He didn't like it. It scared him. He knew that each word Slytherin was true. If Umbra did rise to power, if he took over the wizarding world, there would be no stopping him. He looked at Slytherin, who stared back. They finally seemed to understand one another.

Suddenly the door to the Infirmary opened. Darien jumped and looked around. For a second no one appeared in the entrance of the Hospital wing. Then four faces peered around the corner making Darien grin. His friends had snuck in. Lionel grinned back with Rex. They rushed forward to see Darien. Sam and Leoni were behind them. The two girls were just smiling as they walked after the boys. "Darien, man! What happened last night? We heard you were attacked by something. You alright?" Lionel asked as he pulled up a chair. Darien shrugged. "I'm fine. Sore but fine." He told them.

Sam stood next to Leoni and Rex. "So what attacked you?" She asked. Darien was quiet for a minute. He didn't know if he could tell them what he was. He was afraid of what they might say. What if they wouldn't like him anymore? Or if they were afraid of him? He didn't want that. So he decided not to tell them. "You guys, I don't want to talk about it. Okay. I'm not feeling good right now." He said. His friends just looked at one another then nodded. "Okay." Rex said. Lionel shrugged. "So how long are you going to be in here?" He asked. They talked for awhile about what was going on with school and about how Whitman was still being a pansy to everyone. Darien groaned when Lionel told him about the classes he was missing. He was no doubt going to be in trouble.

"Hey, by the way, Darien. I kind of borrowed your book 'cause I got bored and wanted to read something. I hoped you don't mind." Rex said pulling Slytherin's Hogwarts, A History of his bag. He held it out to Darien who took it. "Out of curiousity, why are you marking weird things in the book?" His small friend asked. Darien looked down at the book in his hands and flipped through it. He didn't know how he was going to explain this one to them. He tried to think of an excuse. "Well...I..." He stopped. He shook his head. "I don't know." He said setting the book down. His friends all just watched him. Lionel picked up the book and flipped through it looking at what Darien had wrote in the pages. Darien didn't do anything to stop him. The blonde haired Gyrffindor looked up after seeing a few words. "What the hell is the Umbra?" He asked. Darien sighed rubbing his temple. "That is what I want to know. I've been looking all over for the answer but I just can't find it. If you know anything, feel free to tell me." he said plopping back onto his pillow. His friends just all laughed at him.

Later, his parents had returned along with Madam Pomfrey. Remus just laughed at the guilt ridden faces of Darien's friends when they caught them talking to him. He just shook his head and said it was all right. They made Darien drink a nasty tasting potion before letting him leave. He was going to head up to the Gryffindor Tower to get changed first. "Do you want us to come with you?" Lionel asked. Darien shook his head. "Nah. You guys just go ahead and go to lunch. I'll be down in a sec." He said. His friends nodded and headed into the Great Hall.

Darien was half way there when he kept getting a very weird feeling. He slowed his pace as he frowned. There was something wrong. He didn't know where this feeling was coming from but he didn't like it. He stopped and looked down at the ground. He just stood there for a minute trying to think of what the feeling could have been when suddenly he saw a flash. It was more like a flash of a memory in his mind. But he knew he hadn't seen anything like that. He had seen the Chamber of Secrets and blood all over the place. There was blood pouring out of the snake statue's mouth. And lying in the middle of the floor was..."Paul?" Darien whispered. His eyes then lit up and he felt a chill just run up his spine. He quickened his pace to get to the Gryffindor Tower.

As soon as he got there, he quickly gave the password then hurried in. Darien dashed into the common room and up the stairs to the boy's dorms. His heart was racing. He only hoped that what he was feeling was wrong. He skipped a few stairs running up them and then threw his door open, entering the room. He looked around finding his fellow room mate sitting on his bed counting his Chocolate Frog cards. Paul had looked up when Darien entered.

"Hey, Darien. How's it going?" He then frowned seeing the astonished look on Darien's face. "Uh, are you okay?" He asked. Darien blew out a relieved sigh and nodded. He ran his fingers through his hair. "Yeah. I'm just still trying to get over my sickness from a night ago." He said. Paul smiled jokingly and leaned back away from him. "Well, whatever you have, mate, don't pass it onto me." He said. Darien cracked a smile and then laughed. He went over to his trunk and pulled out some cloths. "Don't worry. I won't." He quickly changed before heading towards the door. "Well, I'm heading to lunch now. See you later." He said as he started to leave.

But then the dark feeling came over him again just as he approached the door. He slowed down a little trying to shake it off. But before he could leave the room, he froze dead in his tracks when he heard Paul speak up. "You can't run from me forever, Lupin. Your little sanctuary will not always protect you." He heard Paul say in a dark tone. But it wasn't just Paul's voice Darien had heard. No, it was Umbra's.


	12. Chapter 11

**A/N: I am SO sorry for the long wait for the update. I hope you all haven't given up on me yet. I haven't had any access to the internet for all this time and I just got it back. During that time, I have done several chapters, which I will update for you, all. Please forgive me for being gone for so long. And I hope you're still interested in reading this story. Anyway, if you're still there, readers, here is the awaiting chapter, including a couple more. Please read and review.

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****Chapter 11.**

Darien's face drained from all color and warmth. He felt his heart nearly stop beating from hearing that voice. Goosebumps began forming on his arms and the hairs on the back of his neck rose. His multcolored eyes widened and he stared right forward. Did he just hear right? Was that who he had just heard?

"BOY! WATCH OUT!!"

"Darien!" He heard two different voices yell out, one belonging to Slytherin and the other belonged to someone else.

Darien spun around pulling his wand out of his pocket to throw up a spell when he felt some kind of force wrap around his chest and slammed him into the wall, six feet off the ground. The eleven year old cried out in pain as his back made contact with the wall. He had dropped his wand in the process. He looked down at Paul with shock. Paul's eyes were glowing red and he was smirking evilly with his wand turned onto Darien.

"Darien Fenrir Lupin, at last." He spoke but it wasn't his voice. It was someone else's. A deeper and dark voice Darien only heard in his dreams or when he changed. The Umbra was inside Paul!

"You! You're the Umbra?!" He gasped.

Paul/Umbra sneered as he stepped forward and looked up at the frightened 11 year old. His red eyes began to glow brighter. "Of course...well, only temporary. I only borrowed this weakling's body. He'll die once I'm done with it. But yes. I am Umbra, the shadows who haunts your dreams, desires your soul and wishes for control." He chuckled darkly. Darien glared down at him trying not show his fear. "What do you want with me! What have I done to you!" He demanded to know.

Paul/Umbra tilted his head with an innocent look. "You did nothing to me, my dear boy. And what I want, I do believe Slytherin has told you, don't you remember? He told you about me, didn't he? But not every thing of course. He can't because we had an unbreakable vow. Of course, he can't die if he breaks that vow. But he can destroy himself. That's why he won't tell you anything. He wants you to figure out who and what I am for yourself." He sneered as he looked to the side.

Darien followed his gaze and saw Slytherin standing there looking extremely angry and helpless. Darien knew that the grumpy ghost couldn't touch anything. He couldn't do anything to help even if he tried. The only thing he could do was yell, rant and rave. But what good would that do?

"Release the boy now, demon! This is between me and you!" Slytherin snarled.

Paul/Umbra laughed. "No my dear Slytherin. This is between me and Darien Lupin. You had your chance to stop me but you failed. You are nothing but a toy I can play with." Slytherin gritted his teeth and charged at Paul/Umbra. He swung his fist at him but of course, it went right through him. The possessed boy just laughed harshly. "See. You can do nothing to me. But I, on the other hand," He paused beginning to glow purple. The same purple light began glowing around Slytherin making the ghost gasp in pain and fly back right through the wall.

"Slytherin!" Darien gasped. He shot Paul/Umbra a loathing look. "Leave him alone! You've already ruined his life! Why are you doing this to him!"

Paul/Umbra just laughed. "Why? Why?! Because I can, Darien! He's nothing but a toy to me! I used him as a puppet of my own bidding when he was still alive." He smirked cruelly. "Just like you will be."

A dark aura began to form around Paul/Umbra and searing pain struck right through Darien, who cried out. He could feel darkness trying to push right into him. It was starting to fill take over him. He knew Umbra was trying to do what he did to Paul. Trying to gain control so he could do what he was planning to do.

"Darien?" Someone suddenly called.

He gasped as he forced himself to look down at the door, just as Rex entered and looked around. The short Gryffindor looked up and gasped in shock seeing Darien hovering off the air and Paul glowing like the way he was. Rex's intrusion distracted Paul/Umbra well enough. He had released Darien by accident now that his eyes were on Rex. Darien fell back down to the ground, landing on his knees.

Pushing the pain aside, he grabbed his wand and aimed at Paul/Umbra, who looked back. "Let! Paul! GO!" He yelled before waving his wand violently at the possessed boy.

Paul/Umbra jumped back as white blinding light shot at him before letting out a bloodcurling scream and tried to cover his eyes. The scream was more like a Banshee's scream. It echoed throughout the entire castle making everyone in it jump and cover their ears. The white light lashed out at Paul/Umbra like a whip. It seemed to hurt the demon. Rex was still shocked to see what was happening but knew instantly that something was wrong with Paul when he had seen the red eyes. He knew that this was not Paul. It was something else. Something incredibly evil. He knew Darien needed his help. He quickly grabbed his wand and pointed at his possessed fellow Gryffindor.

"Darien! What's going on?! What is this thing?!"

Darien kept his wand on Paul/Umbra. "I don't know what it is! But its not Paul! There's something inside him, using him! Stun it! We have to stop it from escaping...!" He spoke too soon.

Paul/Umbra fell onto his back, writhing in pain as the light grew brighter. Just as soon as the possessed Gryffindor was down, a big black cloud burst from Paul's body and flew into the air. It was still screaming in pain as the white light hit it. Darien and Rex kept their wands on it trying to stun it. The cloud was fast though. It would move around the spells before lashing out and hitting the two 11 year olds, knocking them off their feet. Darien and Rex gasped as their air was knocked out from their lungs. They looked up to see the black cloud form a face. A terrorfying demonic face. The red eyes glaring down at Darien, who cowered.

"This is not the end, Darien! I will have your soul! You cannot escape your fate!" It yelled at him before shooting up into a dark corner and disappearing.

Darien quickly pointed his wand at the corner and sent a stunning spell at it. But it did nothing. He knew Umbra wasn't there.

"Holy shit! What in god's name just happened?!" His little friend exclaimed. Darien looked over at him as he pulled himself up with Rex. He shook his head. "I don't know. Are you okay?" He asked. Rex gave him a crazy look. "No! But that's something I should be asking! Are you all right?! I saw what that thing was doing to you!" He practically yelled. Darien winced at his friend's high pitched voice before looking at the motionless Paul. His eyes grew wide. "Oh no! Paul!" He cried out and ran over to his room mate's side. Rex quickly followed. They both bent down by Paul's side looking him over. Paul's eyes were closed and he was breathing rather raspy.

Darien touched his friend's neck and swore. "He's got a weak pulse. We have to get him some help or he's going to die!" He said. Rex whimpered a little from fear and worry.

"What the?! What happened?!" They heard Lionel exclaimed.

They looked up just in time to see Lionel and several other Gryffindors coming in. They must have heard the yelling and came to see what was going on. Darien found this the opportunity of getting help.

"Lionel! Paul's hurt really bad! Go get Dumbledore! Hurry!" He yelled. Lionel heisitated for a second as he looked Paul over before nodding and running out. Darien then looked back down at Paul. "Paul! Hold on!" He said with panic. Paul gasped in his state and started coughing. He sounded like someone getting crushed. Darien knew that he was dying. He knew that if Dumbledore didn't hurry, Paul would be dead.

"Lupin!" He heard someone yell.

He jumped and turned around to see Slytherin appear out of thin air. "The wand! Use my wand to save his life!" He said pointing at the black-red wand.

Darien stared at him. "What?! But I don't know any life saving spells! I'm only a first year!" He yelled back. He knew that everyone in the room was giving him an odd look. He knew they couldn't see Slytherin like he could.

However, Slytherin growled with annoyance and frustration. "My wand contains Phoenix ash, Darien Lupin! It will heal him on its own! Just point it at the boy and it will heal him!" He snarled. Darien blinked a few times before remembering what Ollivander had said about its powers. He quickly pointed his wand at Paul. 'Come on. Save him, please!' He thought helplessly.

As soon as he said that in his mind, the tip of the wand began to glow a bright golden color. Golden static began to trace all over Paul's body. Everyone in the room gasped in amazement as they watched Darien F. Lupin healing Paul with one of the most advanced healing spells.

By the time the adults arrived with Lionel, Darien had almost healed Paul completely. Remus, Hermione, Sirius, McGongall, Pomfrey and Dumbledore all froze with the students. They were in complete shock. They had never seen anything like this. Darien Lupin, a first year student was using advanced magic.

Finally Paul gave a jerk and his eyes shot open. He gasped for air and coughed violently. He just laid there staring wide eyed up at the ceiling as everyone was staring at Darien. Darien had looked up at the adults once the spell was complete. His eyes grew wide seeing them. He looked back down at Paul knowing that it must have looked like he attacked him. He looked back up. "Professor! I can explain...! I didn't...I mean, it was..." He began to panic.

Dumbledore held up a hand as he hurried forward. "It's quite all right, Darien. I know what spell that you were using. Move aside, please." He said. Darien stood quickly with Rex and backed away. "He didn't do it, Professor! He didn't hurt Paul! It was some kind of black cloud!! It was trying to hurt Darien by using Paul!" Rex said quickly trying to defend his friend. Hermione's face went paler than it had been. So had Remus's. They both looked wide eyed at Darien. "What! Darien! Are you all right?!" His mother gasped hurrying to his side and pulling him into a hug. Dumbledore was looking at Darien knowingly before looking back at Paul. The Gryffindor was shaking just a little.

"Mom! I'm fine!" He heard Darien mumbled. "Professor, is Paul going to be okay?" Darien asked.

Dumbledore looked up again. "He'll be fine now, Darien. You saved his life with that spell. He'll just be a little weak." He stood up looking at Sirius. "Sirius, please take Paul down to the Hospital Wing right now. He will need to be observed." He said. Sirius nodded before hurrying forward and picking Paul up. He turned and hurried out with Madam Pomfrey. Dumbeldore turned to face Darien who was looking at him through nervous eyes. "Darien, what happened? What black cloud is Mr. Kegerreis talking about?" He asked seriously.

Darien swallowed hard. He didn't know how he was going to explain this one. He had kept vital information from the Headmaster about the dangers that might have been in Hogwarts. He trembled a little against his mother, who squeezed him firmly but gently. "Tell us, Darien. Please." She said softly.

Darien opened his mouth to start explaining. "I don't know what it is, Professor. And I don't know what it wants. It just keeps showing up in my dreams. It calls itself the Umbra. It keeps saying that it wants to take me over . As if I had some kind of power that would help it." He said rather quickly. He felt a hand quickly touch his shoulder and turn him. He looked up at his father who was looking at him with surprise.

"Did you say the Umbra?" Remus asked quickly.

Darien nodded uncertainly. "Yeah."

Remus's face went paler and he took his trembling hand off of Darien's shoulder. There was relization and fear in his eyes. It was like he knew something that no one else did. Hermione staring at her husband with confusion. "Remus?" She asked touching his shoulder. Remus shook his thoughts out before looking around at the students watching them in curiousity. He looked back at Dumbledore. "Albus, the children should not hear what I have to say. It would be better if they didn't." He said warningly. Dumbledore nodded looking at the children. "Then we should go up to my office." He said. Remus nodded putting his hand on Darien's shoulder. "And you, are coming with, young man." He said seriously. "You have a lot of explaining to do." His son winced and nodded. He knew he was in it deep.

Dumbledore took The Lupins, and McGonagall up to his office where there were Sirius and two other men waiting. Seeing one of them, Darien cringed and lowered his head. Harry Potter. Harry was looking at him in surprise but said nothing as they all filed into the room. Darien sat down next his mother while Remus stood behind them. He could feel several eyes on him. He knew they were all waiting for him to explain.

"Darien, please tell us what you know." Dumbledore said in a low voice.

Darien rose his head to meet his Professor's eyes. But instead he looked behind him. The Slytherin ghost was standing there with his arms folded. He looked a little grave but he gave Darien a nod. "Tell them, boy. There's no way out of this." Darien nodded and took a deep breath. He began telling them all everything. From what he could do, to what wand he now owned and to his dreams. He didn't leave anything out. He could feel his mother trembling by his side. He knew she was sobbing in fear from what he was telling her. No one interupted.

Finally once Darien was done, he looked down at the floor in shame for not telling them sooner. He knew that his father was probably very disappointed but scared for him. He didn't want to look up at him at all. He didn't want to see what look was on Remus's face.

"So your saying, that Salazar Slytherin's ghost is haunting Hogwarts because of this thing called Umbra?" Kingsley Shacklebolt asked as he tried to put things together.

Darien slowly nodded then pointed to behind Dumbledore. "He's right there."

Everyone looked but of course saw nothing. Slytherin was just eyeing them all with discomfort. "My god. How could I have been so blind?" Remus muttered running his fingers through his hair. Everyone looked at him.

"Huh? What do you mean, Remus?" Hermione asked.

Remus walked over to the window and looked out. He was quiet for a long time. He didn't answer at first but Sirius did. "The Umbra. We know what it is." He was the next one to get a look from everyone. "Sirius?" Harry asked.

Sirius folded his arms and looked up at the ceiling. "Long ago, while Remus and I were in our third year, strange things were happening at Hogwarts. James noticed them too. You should remember, Professors. You were there." He said glancing over at Dumbledore and McGonagall.

"Are you implying the strange attacks on a few of the students?" The Transfiguaration Professor asked.

Remus turned around with a nod. "Yes." He said simply. He scratched the back of his neck. "Of course, being how we were, James, Sirius, Peter and I wanted to find out what it was. We began looking in every nook and cranny trying to find out what could have been attacking the students. While having our daily disagreements with Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape. We couldn't find out anything. But there was no need. It found us. Or me I should say." Remus sighed shaking his head. He folded his arms. "It was some kind of darkness demon. We never could see what it looked like because it was always in the shadows. We could only make out its peircing red eyes and white fangs that always smirked at us. It came to me first. It seemed very interested in what I was. The demon had told me it has never possessed a werewolf before and it wanted to give it a try. However, it couldn't because James walked in before it had the chance. It made a hideous sound before leaving." He told them.

Sirius nodded. "Remus told us what had happened. James, Peter and I didn't believe him at first. We only thought he might have been pulling our legs. Just to get back at James and me for putting itching powder in his bed." He couldn't help but weakly laugh at that. "We found out the hard way that he wasn't just joking around. It tried to kill James during a Quidditch match one night. It was that one match that lasted for four hours. It was raining pretty hard that day too. Hard to see the Snitch. James had to depend on his hearing to find it." He looked at the look on Harry's face but shook his head. "James outwitted that thing like no other. It was getting a little dark and it showed up. The damnable demon tried to knock him off his broomstick but of course, James flew out reach every time it tried."

"He only infuriated the Umbra only more and more. Every time it tried to knock James off the broom, he only moved out of the way. He just kept taunting that thing, just pissing it off." Remus said with a short laugh.

Sirius laughed with him weakly. "He made it chase him around the stadium until it hit one of the lights. Made an awful scream but no one else heard it because of the excitement going on in the crowds. Everyone was just screaming and hollaring about the Ravenclaw Seeker seeing the Snitch. James had never been so mad when it came to a Quidditch game. Ravenclaw won because that damned creature had kept him so occupied in trying to keep alive. He had refused to talk to anyone the entire night."

Remus snorted looking at Sirius. "That is until you threatened to burn all of his underwear." He said laughing. Everyone had to smile at that.

Darien tilted his head still looking at his father. "So you've met the Umbra?"

Remus looked at his son and nodded. "Yes, Dari. I have. And I may have pissed it off because I kept refusing to let it possess me." He saw the look in Darien's eyes and nodded. "You've been doing the same, haven't you?" Darien just nodded as he stared at the ground. "Good. Because if it does get a hold of you, it will only use you."

Sirius nodded. "It almost got Remus once. If it wasn't for James and me. It bloody nearly had him before we cursed the stupid thing. We tried to exorcise it."

Everyone looked at him in surprise. "What? You tried to exorcise it? But it's a demon, isn't it? Not a ghost." Harry said.

Sirius gave a short bark of a laugh. "That's probably why it's still around then. You can exorcise a demon, you know. But it doesn't mean it can't come back. We thought we destroyed the thing. Guess not." he said with a shrug.

Dumbledore breathed in deeply. "And you never informed anyone about it." He said. Remus and Sirius looked at each other then nodded. "Yeah. We didn't. We thought it was best if no one knew. We didn't know that it would come back though. Where it went and why it's come back, we don't know." The tired looking Lupin said.

"It never went anywhere. Umbra has been hiding this entire time." Slytherin spoke up. Only Darien looked at him. He tilted his head. "Well, where's its been hiding then? How come it hadn't tried anything after that?" Everyone looked at him thinking he was asking his father the question but noticed that he wasn't looking at Remus. Slytherin shook his head. "Where he sleeps, Lupin. Where is it the darkest and there is no light that can harm him?" he asked. Darien lowered his head his eyes growing wide.

"The Chamber of Secrets."

"What?" Harry asked in surprise.

Darien looked up wide eyed. "The Umbra! It has been hiding in the Chamber of the Secrets all this time. Slytherin said that it never went anywhere. But why was it there?" He asked looking back at Slytherin. The ghost shook his head. "It has been so long since then, Lupin. I can't remember." He said. Darien gave Slytherin a look. "Your a ghost, Slytherin. Your suppose to remember."

The grumpy ghost just gave him a cool look and the candles flickered again. Harry remembered this. "Darien, don't make him mad." He warned. Everyone was looking around.

"What's going on?" Hermione asked. Darien shook his head. "Slytherin is just really grumpy that's all. He takes everything so seriously."

Sirius smirked as he looked in the direction where Slytherin was. "Well, after being cursed on the planet, trying to get revenge on that thing for so long, I can see why." Slytherin just gave him a look.

Hermione pushed her hair back behind her ears. "So why can only Darien see Slytherin? I don't understand that. He is here, right?" She asked. Darien nodded. "He's there. I promise." He told her. Dumbledore nodded. "We believe you, Darien." He looked at the other Professors. "I should have seen this coming myself. Do you not remember the riddle the Sorting Hat gave us in the beginning of the year?"

Everyone looked at him in puzzlement. "Albus, what do you mean?" McGonagall asked.

Dumbledore shook his head before he turned towards the Sorting Hat sitting up in the corner. The Sorting Hat started moving as if it could sense their eyes. It turned it's strange face towards them. "Sorting Hat, would you mind repeating that riddle?" Dumbledore asked in a kind voice. The Sorting Hat dipped it's tip as if giving a nod. "Certainly, kind Headmaster. Do you want the entire song?" It asked.

Dumbledore shook his head. "Just the riddle. Skip the introductions for the Houses." he said. The Hat nodded once again.

_"A thousand years ago or more I was new_

_The sun was shining the skies were blue_

_Even though the founders were only four._

_No one knew that there was just one more._

_One who brought nothing but chaos_

_Tricking one of the four, to make him lost._

_Making him believe that he was the top one, _

_that he should be serious and not fun._

_Put me on your head and you will see,_

_what house that you would in be._

_Even though they shared the same dreams, wishes and hopes._

_One of them wanted to be every thing and would try to cope,_

_He followed the wrong person's advice,_

_and because of that, the four friends put their friendship on ice._

_How could everything just go so wrong?_

_This is my darkest and gloomiest song._

_I was there to see it happen so I can tell, _

_of how the pure one of the four fell._

_The Hogwarts Founders worked in harmony for several years_

_Until the discord crept up on them bringing them their fears._

_The Fifth unknown had tricked the pure one to make him believe,_

_that the others are plotting against him, that he is the one they will deceive._

_After many fights with Gryffindor, Slytherin had decided to depart,_

_ignoring the pleas of the three, he left them with a broken heart._

_In the future years, his spirit still wanders, hoping to find the truth,_

_of how he had fallen so far down and how he get back to his roots._

_His spirit is here now, watching for the one who he despised, _

_the one who made him in the night cried._

_He will warn the chosen with dreams of fright,_

_to help him fight the shadow who hated the light._

_He wishes to be once again with the three of his friends,_

_he wants to make his hatred and greed end._

_For if the four houses do not reunite we will crumble within,_

_I have told you, warned you before, but now let the sorting begin."_

Everyone was quiet for a very long time. Darien looked over at Slytherin to see what his reaction to it would be. The ghost was looking away, his eyes hard. He felt Darien's eyes on him so he glanced over. The young Gryffindor gave him a faint smile and shrug.

"So that riddle, it has something to do with the creature inside Hogwarts?" Shacklebolt asked. Everyone looked at one another. Dumbledore slowly nodded. "I suppose that is true." he said. His kind blue eyes looked right at Darien. "And of course, Salazar Slytherin." He tilted his head. "We can only wonder what sort of power our young friend here possesses that the Umbra would want." He said.

Everyone looked at Darien, who started to blush and looked down at the floor.

He felt Remus's hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him. "I don't like this one bit. There is a demon after my son." Hermione said folding her hands into her lap. Darien looked up at her. She looked extremely distressed. Her eyes were tearing up. "There has to be something done about it."

Sirius and Harry looked right at each other before looking at Dumbledore. "Hermione, something will be done. We are going to search the entire castle for this creature. No harm will come to Darien. Not if we can help it." The Headmaster promised. Harry nodded as he stepped forward. "That's right, Mione. And when he says the entire castle, he means it." He said. Everyone looked at him. Harry looked very serious. "That includes the Chamber of Secrets. I, myself, will lead aurors down there if I have to. But every inch of the castle will be searched." He then looked at Dumbledore. "With Professor Dumbledore's permission of course."

Dumbledore just smiled at him. "I wouldn't prefer it any other way, Harry." He said. Everyone smiled. Dumbledore returned his gaze onto Darien. "Darien, however, I don't want you to be wandering alone at all. Not until we can take care of the problem." He said. Darien slowly nodded. "Yes, sir." he said. Dumbledore looked at Sirius. "Sirius, would you be so kind to escort Darien to the Gryffindor Common Room? I would like a word with Hermione and Remus."

Sirius nodded. "Sure." he looked at Darien. "Come on, D." Darien nodded as he stood, glancing at his parents. Both Remus and Hermione were looking at him with worry but they both forced a smile. Darien turned and followed Sirius out of the office.

The two of them walked down the hall, ignoring some of the looks they were getting from other students. Darien was keeping his eyes to the floor. Sirius glanced down at him a few times before sighing. He stopped in his footsteps and Darien had to stop with him. He looked up at his 'Uncle'. Sirius was looking down at the ground. "Darien, I wish you would have told us sooner." he shook his head looking back at Darien. "I understand why you didn't tell any of us. Your father, your mum, even me. But now that we know, I better warn you." He lowered his head a little ignoring the long strand of black that fell over his dark eyes. "The Umbra, Dari, is not one that you should underestimate. You better watch yourself every where you go, if you have to. I don't mean to frighten you, just know that."

Darien slowly nodded. "I know, Sirius."

Sirius reached over and placed his hand on the 11 year old's shoulder. "I don't really know what Umbra wants with you, Darien. But I swear an oath that it will not harm you. Not as long as I'm alive." he said. Darien faintly smiled at him. "Sirius, I'm pretty sure that if you do try to protect me with that oath, Umbra will see to it that it's done. He will kill you and I can't..." His voice grew weak. "I don't know what I would do if you were killed because of me."

Sirius just gazed at him, his eyes softening. He lift his chin a little higher. "Darien, I would rather die than see the ones I love get hurt. I said the same to Harry a long time ago. I will not stand by and watch a monster harm my best friend's son." He told him.

Darien knew that he was serious. It was that tone he was using. He remembered hearing it once. Sirius had once used it on Harry before one of his auror missions that Sirius had not approved of. He faintly smiled at Sirius. "Thanks, Sirius."

Sirius smiled back as he pulled Darien close into an embrace. Darien just laughed as he embraced him back, then pulled away. "Any time you need help, any at all. I want you to come to me or your father. In fact, we can tell you anything about Umbra right now. Of what we know of course. But not right now. Let's get you back to the Gryffindor Tower." He said. Darien just nodded and they walked together to the tower.


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews, everyone. I'm so happy to hear that you are still reading it. I think you might find this chapter a little interesting. Anyway, here's a quick shout out to some of the reviewers. **

**Hello.I'mMarySue**- Hello, Mary Sue, I'm D.C. Lol. No, I really like your screen name though. It's definitely unique. No joke at all. I love it. hehehe. I'm glad your enjoying this story. As the story goes, you will see a lot more information unwinding. I won't go into the details till later. But keep reading, kay? Nice to meet you again. Take care.

**nomoreseverusharryslash**-whew! That screen name is a mouthful. lol. Though, I agree with your name. I'm not too fond of Severus slash Harry stories. Not that I have anything against them. I just don't like them. Anyway, yes. Darien is an American name and I'm actually very fond of it. And I happen to be American. But anyway, thanks for your advice though. I might use a "Kevin" or "Victor" or maybe a "David" next time in one of my stories. But I don't think that will be anytime soon.

**NZgnomegirl-**Thank you for your comment. Yeah, I guess it is irony that Darien's greatest skill happens to be the one skill Hermione never really had. Though, the way I see it, Hermione and Remus eventually did have the inner eye, it just wouldn't surface for them. So they passed it right to Darien. And eventually, James and Peter will have it too. But that's another story. And acutally, I haven't really thought about the story during Hermione's growing up years. But I may think of something. As for the chances of the Umbra possessing Sam, well...it's a very good possibility. It can possess whoever it wants...well not really. But it can sure try. Lol. Anyway, thank you for your review. I very much enjoyed it. And I can promise you that the coming chapters should be very interesting for you.

Anyway, enough with the reviews. LET'S GET TO THE STORY!! Hehehe.

* * *

**Chapter 12.**

The next day came the announcment for all of the students. Of course, the students wouldn't be exactly told what was going on, only the precautions. Darien didn't tell his friends about what the Umbra was when they asked and what had happened. He didn't really want to talk about it. Of course, they kept asking. Darien would only then ignore them. It had turned into an uneasy night since he had returned to the Gryffindor Tower. Everyone was just bombarding him with questions until he was ready to scream. It was only then Sam threatened to deck every single one's lights out if they didn't leave him alone. Darien had to thank her at that.

He was sitting on his bed early the next morning, just looking out his window. The frost was growing thick on the glass and he was actually enjoying the cool breeze. He was watching snowflakes starting to fall from the sky. For once since he arrived at Hogwarts he felt at peace. He wasn't too worried about Umbra at the moment. His multicolored eyes slowly drifted from the window to the empty bed where Paul usually slept. He felt a little guilty for getting Paul mixed up into the mess. He just wondered if there was anyone else who was being possessed.

"Darien?" He heard.

He turned his eyes away from Paul's bed and looked over at Lionel, who was sitting up in his own bed. Darien forced a smile. "Morning, Lionel."

Lionel pushed his long bangs out of his eyes and set his feet on the floor. "Are you all right?" He asked. Darien looked back out the window. "I'll be fine." He knew that was a lie. And so did Lionel.

The blonde held his breath before he got out of his bed and walked over to where Darien was sitting. He sat down next to his friend. "Darien, I know something's up. I'm worried about you. So's Rex and Sam. What's going on?"

Darien was quiet for a long time before he turned his multicolored eyes onto Lionel. "I'll tell you later tonight. I promise. But not right now." He looked around the softly lit room. "Not when it's dark like this."

Lionel glanced around before turning his blue eyes back onto Darien. "There's something in the darkness, isn't there?" he asked. Darien lowered his head as he looked at the ground. "I don't know. But I don't like the darkness anymore. It scares me." He admitted. Lionel slowly nodded as he put his hand on Darien's shoulder. "Yeah." He paused. "It scares me too." He said. The two friends smiled at one another and then looked back out the window at the falling snow.

The three Gryffindor friends walked into the Great Hall, catching a few eyes that were lingering on them. Darien glanced around before lowering his head. "I wish they would stop looking at me like that."

Lionel glared at a few Ravenclaw boys who were staring towards them. "They better stop, or I'm going to put my fist through someone's teeth." He hissed in annoyance. Rex nodded. They all sat down in their seats, Sam sitting close by. She had her black hair pulled back into a tight ponytail. She was glancing around, with a stoney look. "I swear, it's like they've never seen someone who survived a dark creature attack." She said in disgust. Darien only glanced at her then went back to eating.

"May I have your attention, please?" Dumbledore then called out.

Slowly everyone went quiet and looked up at the Headmaster. Dumbledore stood up and held up his hands for complete silence. Once it was quiet, he cleared his throat. "Over the past few months, we all have noticed a strange chain of events happening. I am afraid to say that it is indeed a very serious cause. Serious enough that we will be having aurors patrolling the halls of Hogwarts every day and night. There will be a new set of rules placed upon Hogwarts until the aurors can find the cause of the strange events. The first rule, no one is allowed to wander the halls without someone accompanying them. That includes during the day. Second, no student is allowed to bother the aurors while they are here. They are here to under serious circumstances. I'm afraid I can't explain what they are. It would be best if I didn't." He paused looking everyone over. He turned his eyes over to Darien, who only met his eyes once before looking down. "Thirdly, I'm afraid that every student will have to be in their House towers before dark. No excuses. I am afraid that it has gotten rather dangerous at night. Also, if there is any of your classmates that is behaving rather strangely, you are to report to your Heads of your house or to our caretaker." He motioned to Sirius, who just lift his chin higher.

Dumbledore then smiled. "Students of Hogwarts, you must not fear of what is going on. We will have everything back to normal as soon as we can. But until then, keep smiling and be happy." He said sitting back down. Everyone in the room turned to their neighbors and began whispering. Of course, Lionel, Rex and Sam looked directly at Darien, who was trying not meet his eye.

Later, in D.A.D.A, Darien was trying to work on his essay on trolls. His thoughts kept drifting off to the Umbra again. He really hoped that Harry and the other aurors would track it down quickly so he wouldn't be afraid anymore. He didn't want anyone getting hurt because of him.

As he wrote on his parchment, he felt a little drowzy. He shook his head a few times before looking around. Everyone was still working and Remus was looking over some papers on his desk. Darien closed his eyes for a brief second and when he opened them again, he wasn't in the class room anymore.

He was in a dark room, and that scared him a little. He looked around nervously. The room was almost like Snape's office. There were a few shelves full of potions. It was clearing the Potions classroom. Darien looked around before spotting a younger Salazar Slytherin at the desk, hovering something. He tilted his head before moving closer to see better. Salazar Slytherin was carving a wand. A blackish-red wand. Darien's eyes lit up seeing it. It was the wand he carried now. Slytherin was just carving the final touches to his wand, the red S, when there was a knock. He looked up just in time to see a large man walk in.

The man had a look of a lion, or that was what he looked like to Darien. He was wearing scarlet clothing and a golden cloak. His dirty blonde hair fell all around his face. Long strands hung over his strange amber colored eyes. Darien could only think this was Godric Gryffindor. He soon had his answer.

Slytherin sat up straighter seeing the slightly older man, a cool smile formed on his face. "Gryffindor, what can I do for you?" he asked coolly.

The man stepped closer as he glanced around. He turned his amber eyes onto Slytherin. "Salazar, we must talk. I have heard something of an interest about you."

Slytherin just kept working on his wand. "Oh really? And what would that be, my old friend?" He asked in such a way that it was almost like dislike. Darien looked up at Gryffindor who was looking at Slytherin with confusion now. He tilted his head as he stopped in front of the desk. "Salazar, is there something wrong?" He asked. Slytherin just looked at him in silence. He narrowed an eye. "Godric, can you not see that I am busy?" He motioned to his wand.

Gryffindor looked down at it for a brief second before squinting his eyes. "Salazar, what are you doing?"

Salazar just watched his fellow founder with narrowed eyes. "I am creating my wand, of course." He said. Godric studied the long blackish red wand. "Curious piece of magic, Salazar." he then looked at Slytherin. "Rowena is concerned about you, my friend. She has told me that you go into the dungeons without no torch and you speak to the shadows."

Slytherin's eyes flashed. "Aye, what matter is it to you if I shall go into the dungeons, Gryffindor? I do remember it was apart of our deal that you would not butt into my business. What I do, is my business." He said haughtily.

Gryffindor stepped back looking uneasy. "Salazar, please do not grow angry. I do not mean any harm. I only find it odd." He said. Slytherin returned his eyes onto the wand. He just continued to work on it.

Gryffindor watched him for a while before backing away. "My friend, I aplogize for if I offended you. I will not bother you again about this matter."

Slytherin stopped working on his wand before heaving a sigh. He quickly stood and looked up. "Godric." he called to his friend. Gryffindor stopped in the doorway before turning around. Slytherin stood up from his chair and moved towards him. He shook his head as he stopped in front of him. "Forgive me, friend. I have been rude. I just hear things of you that angers me."

Godric Gryffindor tilted his head as he watched him. "What do you mean? What have you heard of me?"

Slytherin looked down before opening his mouth to say but something was stopping him. Darien saw a darkness surrounding him. Something was holding him back. He wondered if Gryffindor was seeing it. He looked over at the tall blonde. There was a look of confusion on his face but he couldn't see what was going on. Darien knew that he couldn't see the darkness. Slytherin sharply turned away, wincing as if he was in pain. He closed his eyes, gritting his teeth. He felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Salazar?" Gryffindor asked.

Salazar Slytherin opened his eyes before yanking away. "Leave me, Gryffindor. I wish to be alone."

There was a long silence before Gryffindor bowed his head respectfully. "Very well." He turned and walked out of the room. Slytherin stood there in silence before turning around with pain in his eyes.

_'Let him go, Salazar. He is nothing to us.'_

Slytherin turned his head to look off to the side. He was looking at a dark shadowy corner. His eyes darkened at the corner. He gave it a scowling look. "Do you must always spy on me?" He asked. The shadows emitted red eyes which narrowed. "You asked me to be your eyes of the castle, did you not?" It said. Slytherin turned away but said nothing. There was a dark chuckle. "I see you are softening because Gryffindor's trechery." The creature in the darkness said.

Slytherin hissed angrily at the creature. "He has no trechery, Umbra. He is a friend."

The demon in the dark chuckled again. "Are you sure about that?" Slytherin just looked at him with confusion. He opened his mouth to say something but not his voice came. Instead came another.

"Darien."

Darien's eyes snapped open and he looked up at the concerned look on his father's face. He blinked several times before glancing around the room. Some of the other students were watching him. Remus was standing right in front of him, bending over his desk. "Darien, are you all right?" He asked. Darien nodded. "Yeah. I guess I just dazed off. Sorry."

Remus just watched him for a moment before he nodded. He finally stood straight and headed for the front of the room. After about five minutes he faced everyone. "I think that's good enough for today. Your homework is only the essay. Finish it and you can hand it in tomorrow. Class dismissed." He said. Everyone began to gather their things. Remus was watching his son with concern. He knew Darien was hiding something. He didn't like it. He hated it when Darien was hiding things from him. He decided he would have to keep a better eye on his son as much as he could.

During lunch, Darien had decided to go to the library to do a little work. He left the others while they were eating and headed up the stairs. He didn't get very far when someone walked up to him.

"Darien, you know your not suppose to be wandering on your own. Especially when it's you." He turned around to see Harry walking towards him. The jet black haired auror was giving him a lecturing look but smiled at the last minute. Darien shrugged returning his smile. "Sorry, Harry. I just had some work to finish."

Harry shrugged as he joined his side. "Where you heading? I'll walk with you." he said. Darien nodded as he walked on. "I'm just heading to the library."

They were quiet for a minute before Darien looked back at Harry. "Harry, can I ask you about something?"

Harry looked at him then nodded. "Sure. What's on your mind?" He asked. Darien looked back at the ground, almost holding his breath. "Did you ever feel helpless when you knew something was after you but you just didn't know where it would strike and when?" He asked. Harry was quiet for a minute before he turned his emerald green eyes onto Darien. "Sometimes. It was always like that when I knew Voldemort was around." He tilted his head. "You're worried about the Umbra, aren't you?"

Darien nodded, looking forlorn. "Yeah. It's not just the Umbra that has me worried. It's what it does. What if it's possessing someone else?"

Harry shook his head. "You don't have anything to worry about, Dari. The aurors are keeping a very close watch on the students. Sooner or later, we'll have it. And you won't have to be afraid anymore."

Darien sighed as he looked away. "I hope so."

The two of them stepped into the library together and slowly walked past the shelves. Harry glanced around before shaking his head. He pulled Darien around an empty aisle. "Darien, I know I shouldn't be doing this but I think it's the right thing to do." He said. Darien only looked at him in confusion. "Huh?"

Harry glanced around before turning his eyes onto Darien. "How about I teach you a few spells that might help? Just in case the Umbra comes after you again." he said. Darien's eyes lit up in interest. "You want to teach me some spells?" He asked. Harry nodded. "I've talked to Dumbledore about it and he thinks it's a good idea."

Darien grinned. "That would be great!" He said. Harry smiled before rubbing the first year's head. "Good. Now let's get working on that homework of yours." he said, throwing his arm around Darien's shoulder and they walked over to the tables.

While Darien worked on his homework, Harry was keeping watch for anything unsual. It was only when there was a crash from somewhere in the library did he decide to leave to investigate. "Don't go anywhere, Darien. And if something happens, call for me and I'll come running." He told the first year before he went. Darien only nodded and went back to work.

Only a minute later did someone approach. Darien looked up and saw that it was the Divination teacher, Professor Caligo. The Professor was looking through some books, his back facing Darien. Darien just stared at him thinking about their last meeting. He had remembered that the Professor had said he knew about dreams very well. He had even offered to hear about the dreams. Just maybe, he could get some advice from him. After all, he was the Divination Teacher.

So Darien decided he would ask. He glanced around finding no one around before he stood and started walking towards Professor Caligo.

"Hello, Darien." The professor spoke without turning around or looking at him. Darien paused in surprise but then pushed it aside. He just stepped forward.

"I knew it was you of course. And I know you have something to ask me." Professor Caligo turned around and gave the first year a cool smile. "Please, Darien. Do ask your question."

Darien bit his lip, looking a little uneasy but since he was here why not ask. "Professor, it's about before. When you asked me about my dreams. Can you really tell me what they mean?"

Professor Caligo gave him a thoughtful look before motioning to the chairs. "Let's have seat first." He said. Darien nodded and they sat down around the table. The Professor set his books aside and folded his hands together. "As for your dreams, I'm not sure if I can help, Darien. It all depends on what your dreams are about. You would have to tell me about them first and I might just be able to tell you."

Darien nodded before taking a deep breath. He began to tell them about the dreams he had. He didn't leave out any details. The professor only sat there listening to Darien without interupting once. He only had a look of interest. The dreams couldn't have been that interesting but the Professor was very interested. When Darien finished explaining his dreams, he waited for what Professor Caligo would say. There was a very long silence while the Professor rolled the thoughts in his mind.

Finally he slowly nodded. "I see. Your dreams are truly apart of the inner eye, Young Lupin. Your dreams are clearly apart of some kind of powerful force. There are such things as this. I don't know what this Umbra is but I might be able to find something out about it. I am a teacher, you know." He shook his head. "However, even though I can tell you about your dreams, I can't protect you from the darkness."

Darien sighed looking disappointed. "Can anyone protect me from it?

The Professor shook his head. "No. Not even the aurors in this castle. The only one that can is yourself. You're the only one who can fight the demon."

Darien looked at him in worry. "Me? But how? How can I fight it? I'm only a boy. I'm not Harry Potter."

Professor Caligo gave him a faint smile. "That is true. It may be very difficult in trying to defeat something like the darkness. The only way to fight it is to open your mind. With an open mind, it will be more simple." He again shook his head. "However the best way to open your mind is through Divination. And you can't take that class because you a first year. I think you are ready to take it but your parents and the Headmaster do not. I'm afraid we must follow the rules."

Darien looked at the ground. "But...what if you taught me Divination without them knowing? Would that work?" He was very desprete to do anything to get rid of the Umbra. If starting Divination early would help then he would do it.

Professor Caligo shook his head. "Your parents wouldn't like that, Darien. I don't want to get on their bad side." He told him.

Darien shook his head. "They don't have to find out! We can keep it a secret."

There was a long silence before the Professor smiled. "Very well, Young Lupin. I will do what I can. But when we begin, you must do everything I tell you without question. Is that clear?"

Darien nodded. "Okay."

Professor Caligo stood up and gathered his books. "Good. Now our first lesson will begin tonight. Come to my office after dinner. No one must know of this. Not even your friends. And I mean no one." he said staring Darien right in the eye.

Darien had a feeling he was talking about Slytherin. He wondered if the teacher could see the ghost too but he wasn't going to ask. He just nodded. "All right, Professor. I won't." He promised.

The professor nodded in satisfaction before leaving. Darien just sat there watching him go. He was starting to feel something from deep inside. He didn't know what it was, but it felt like darkness. And he liked it.

"Darien?" He heard.

He looked up to see Harry walking up to him. There was a look of worry on his face. "Darien, you all right?" he asked. The first year nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine. I'm just thinking to myself." he said. Harry nodded slowly. "Well, lunch is about over. You better get to your next classes."

Darien nodded as he quickly gathered up his stuff. "Okay. I'll see you later, Harry." He said. Harry nodded and watched him hurry out of the library. He then looked around with suspicion. Something was going on and he really didn't like it. There was something very wicked coming this way.


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13.**

The lessons with Professor Caligo was teaching Darien were a little strange to Darien but he liked them anyway. No one ever found out about that Darien was sneaking out of the Gryffindor Tower at night just to go to his Divination lessons. What the Professor was showing Darien, was how to enter a whole new world.

His own mind. When they first began, the professor tried to explain it.

"What we will be working on is a different level and form of Occlumency. It is the amazing skill of entering one's mind. Using this technique, you will be able to walk around in the world you create in your own mind or walk around in the world of another." The Professor explained during the first lesson. Darien only nodded as he listened. "It's a very difficult form of magic, Mr. Lupin. So be warned now. This will take a lot of patience, concentration, and time. It's also a very rare gift to recieve. Only the wizards and witchs with the true inner eye can achieve this. Later on, using this technique, it will help you understand your dreams." Darien nodded as he took in the information. And then the lessons began.

His other lessons were going very well too. He was passing them, even though Professor Snape was still being an ass to the Gryffindors. Darien hadn't told Rex and Lionel about what was going just yet. They had been too busy too talk about it. Of course, Darien had other problems to worry about. And that was some of the Slytherins.

Ever since Ian Whitman had gotten detention, there had been a rumor that he was going to try and get revenge on Darien. Not that it scared him at all. He wasn't afraid of Whitman at all. He just knew that if he tried anything, he would only get into trouble. However, it didn't seem to bother Whitman at all. In fact, he had other Slytherins do it for him.

It started out in the beginning of December on a frosty morning. The clouds were dark gray and the snow was starting to fall. Darien was in the library with Lionel and Rex, playing wizard chess. Even though the other two Gryffindors couldn't see him, Salazar Slytherin was there too. He was pacing back and forth. Darien only glanced at him a few times before making his move.

"Darien, I think we need to talk." Lionel said making his friend look up at him.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Darien asked.

Rex shook his head. "You still haven't told us what's going on, D. What was that thing that attacked Paul?" He asked. Darien was quiet for a long time before looked at Slytherin, who had stopped pacing. The ghost was just staring right back at him. The two of them just stared into one another's eyes before looking back at the other two curious Gryffindors. "Guys, I don't think I should. It would be better if you didn't know."

Lionel gave him a look of annoyance and impatience. "Don't pull that, Darien. Sooner or later, we'll find out. We're your friends. You can trust us."

Darien lowered his head, not daring to look in their eyes. "It's not that I don't trust you, Lionel. I'm just afraid of what you might say."

There was a long silence between the friends before Lionel and Rex looked at one another then back at Darien. "Darien, no matter what it is, we won't laugh and we won't hate you. We just want to know. We don't want to find out the hard way." The short Gryffindor said. Darien sighed as he looked around then nodded. "All right. But not here. I can't let anyone else hear this." He said. Lionel nodded as he stood up. "All right. Let's go to the owlery then. There shouldn't be anyone there." Darien nodded as he and Rex stood. The three friends hurried out of the library with the ghost of Slytherin following them.

They reached the owlery, luckily no one was there. It was only the three students and the ghost, who had taken up pacing again. Lionel went to the wall and leaned against it with his arms folded while Rex went over and sat down on the window sill. "Okay, Dari. Spill the beans. What've you been keeping from us all year?" The blonde asked.

Darien just stood there for the longest time before lowering his head and turning away. "Before I tell you, you both have to swear you will never tell anyone. Not a soul. Even if you hate me after what I tell you. You swear?"

Lionel and Rex both forced smiles and raised their eyebrows. "Dare, there is no way in hell, no matter what it is, that we're going to hate you. Now spill already. We're not going to tell anyone." The blond told him. Darien could have smiled at that but he didn't. Instead he turned away and held his breath. He knew that he had to tell them. After all, they were his best friends. They had the right to know.  
"Guys...I...I'm...um..." He paused as he began to breath a little faster and harder. He could feel his heart pounding against his chest. He turned to glance at them, which they both were staring at him with curiousity. He looked away again and hurried over to another window to stare out towards the lake. He was having a very hard time in telling Lionel and Rex about what he was. He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to think. "Uh...I..."

"Come on, Darien! How hard can it be to tell us?" Rex asked impatiently.

Darien forced a laugh as he placed his hands on the window sill. "It's a lot harder than you guys think." He paused for a long minute. "Okay. I think I'm ready. Guys...I'm...I'm...I'm a werewolf." He closed his eyes tightly just waiting for everything to explode.

But it never did.

There was a long silence before..."That's it? That's all you've got to say? Darien, we asked about the black cloud thing not what you were." Lionel said in a skeptical way.

Darien opened his eyes and looked at the two with surprise. They didn't look shocked at all. It was like they already knew that secret. "Wait. You guys, didn't you just hear me? I'm a werewolf. Every full moon I turn into a savage beast." He said, wincing a little about how he made that sound.

Rex rolled his eyes as he curled one leg close to his small body. "Darien, we already knew that you were a werewolf. And you are not a savage beast so don't talk like that. I would prefer a overgrown wolf with a very bad attitude."

Darien stared at them in surprise, his mouth fell wide. "You knew?! You knew what I was and you still were my friends?" He asked in shock.

Lionel gave him a dull look. "For god's sake, Darien. Your dad is a werewolf. It's not hard to put two and two together, you know. I mean, how could you not be a werewolf."

Darien continued to stare with shock. "And you guys don't care?"

He heard Slytherin groan as he stopped pacing. Lionel and Rex shared the same dull look before looking back at him. "You know, for someone so smart, you really are dumb, Darien. No, we don't care. We don't care that you are a vicious man eating, overgrown dog! Now get to the real question!" The blonde said waving his hands above his head.

Darien couldn't help but smile. His friends were accepting him for what he was. "Guys, you don't know how much that means to me. I thought you guys wouldn't accept me for what I was. You know, I thought you'd hate me."

Lionel and Rex looked at each other again before they both smiled and shrugged. "Darien, we've known you since the year started now. You're cool, all right? We don't care what you are and what you do. Just as long as you'll be our friend and don't bite us." The short Gryffindor said. Darien laughed and shook his head.

"Now can you please explain the black cloud thing now?" Lionel asked very impatiently.

Darien smiled before taking a deep breath and began to explain everything. He told them everything because he just couldn't hide anything. He told them about his strange power, about Slytherins wand, and he even told them about Umbra. They only listened without interrupting, both had a troubled look on his face.

"So your saying that the black cloud thing was a demon called Umbra and he wants to control you because you're a werewolf." Rex said.

Darien nodded as he looked at both of them. Lionel was just staring off with a distant look on his face. He was thinking hard about what Darien had just told them. "Yeah, pretty much." Darien said. Rex looked away, swallowing hard. "Question is why? There are plenty of werewolves in the world. And, you're only half a werewolf. Why would the Umbra want you when it could have..." He paused to think of an example.

Lionel looked over with a shrug. "Fenrir Greyback. Or Silver Stetson, the leader of the largest werewolf clan." He suggested.

Darien shook his head. "I don't know. It's got to be what I can do. I can see ghosts that no one else can see or hear lost souls in Dementors. What's so interesting about that?"

Lionel smirked. "Heh, maybe he wants to borrow your body for a minute to talk to Elvis."

Darien and Rex both laughed while Slytherin rolled his eyes. Darien shook his head. "I doubt that's it, Lionel but..." He was saying.

"Shhhhh!" Slytherin hissed.

Darien stopped and looked at the ghost with confusion. "What? What is it, Slytherin?" He asked. Lionel and Rex looked at each other surprise but didn't say anything. The ghost was looking towards the door of the owlery. Darien followed his eyes just as a few Slytherins entered. It was Whitman and his goons. They were laughing and pushing each other around. That is until they spotted the three Gryffindors. They halted in their tracks.

"Well, well. Look what we have here. The goody goody Gryffindors." Whitman sneered as he walked forward. Darien backed away till he was standing between Lionel and Rex, who were now glaring.

"What do you guys want?" The blonde growled.

Whitman gave him a cool smile. "We're here to send a letter, what do you think, Nazi?" He asked coldly.

Lionel started forward but Darien caught his arm and held him back. "Lionel, don't!"

The Slytherins all laughed harshly as they pointed at Lionel. "That's right, Lionel. Listen to your boyfriend." Parkinson sneered. Lionel let out a yell of rage as he ripped out of Darien's grip and lunged at the Slytherin.

Next thing everyone knew, Parkinson was the floor, cursing as he held his bloody nose. Lionel was yelling in German at him. Though no one could understand what he was saying they were very sure it was very vulgar. The other Slytherins looked stunned as they watched the outraged 1st year Gryffindor throw his fist at Parkinson again.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Someone exclaimed.

Everyone turned around to see Snape, Harry, and Professor Moody hurry into the owlery. It had been Snape who yelled. Lionel quickly backed away looking very embarrassed. He had just been caught red handed punching Parkinson in the face. "Oh, crud." Rex muttered as he stepped back.

That was the que for Ewart to do something stupid. He pulled out his wand and aimed at Lionel. "Stupify!" He yelled. Darien reacted quickly by shoving Lionel out of the way and intercepted the spell. He heard everyone cry out before everything went black.

His head was throbbing, yet as he heard the blood pounding in his head there was explosions all around him. Darien was standing outside, confused of what was going on. He could hear someone yelling. The sky was black and hidden behind black thunderous clouds. The only source of light that Darien could see was the blood red moon peering from behind the clouds. He looked around, hearing more explosions and screams echoing in the air. His multicolored eyes landed on two dueling wizards. One was wearing emerald green robes with silver lining while the other was wearing scarlet robes with gold lining.

It was a Salazar Slytherin and Godric Gryffindor.

Darien jumped a little when a spell came flying at him. He quickly ducked but reliezed that none of the curses could hit him. He straightened and watched Slythering and Gryffindor battle a deadly game of their knowledge of magic. He wondered what had started the fight in the first place. He was very confused of the happenings. He decided to just listen in to whatever was being said.

"I do not know what you speak of, Salazar! I would never betray my friends!" Gryffindor called as he ducked under a nasty hex that Slytherin threw at him.

Slytherin hissed like an angry snake. "Do not lie, Gryffindor! I know what lies you are spreading! Call me evil, will you?! A heartless dark wizard, am I?! I shall rip your tongue from thy lying head! Then your eyes!" He yelled at him.

Gryffindor deflected the curse that had been thrown at him, yet it knocked him back a little.

"Salazar! Please, stop!" Someone cried out.

Darien turned his head to see a very beautiful woman. Her hair was black and very sleek, falling down to her waist. She had the face of an angel. She was wearing a dark blue gown and a grey silk scar was tied around her waist. She was extremely beautiful. The woman was being held by another, an older one who was wearing yellow. For quite an old woman in her late fifties, she was extremely pretty. She had dark gray hair that was pulled up into a bun. She was wearing a yellow and black gown. The young first year Gryffindor knew that this had to be Helga Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw. He could hardly take his eyes off of Ravenclaw though. He couldn't believe she was so beautiful and so young.

He finally tore his eyes away from her and looked back at the dueling wizards, who had stopped. His eyes grew wide at the look on Slytherin's face though. He actually had tears in his eyes and a very hateful look on his face. He looked hurt to see Rowena Ravenclaw there.

"Salazar, please! Don't hurt Godric! He is our friend!" Ravenclaw cried as she struggled to get a way from Hufflepuff.

Slytherin bared his teeth at her and pointed his wand in her direction. "He is no friend of mine! And if you side with him, Rowena, you are my enemy!" He rose the wand and started to whip it into the air. "Avada..." He was going to yell but he was slammed to the ground by Gryffindor, who stood above him, glaring down at him. "Slytherin! What has gotten into you?! Why such madness as this?!" The powerful wizard yelled at him.

Slytherin hissed again like a snake and just like that, Gryffindor was knocked off his feet by something. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff screamed in horror.

Slytherin had just summoned a fifty foot, five inch wide black cobra. It didn't look like any cobra they had ever seen. In fact, they never knew snakes could sneer or have red eyes like this one did. It only surrounded Slytherin with it's scaley body, letting him use it to climb to his feet. He was glaring at Gryffindor with hate. "Madness, you say?! Godric, you wouldn't even know the meaning of madness! What you see in me is anger! You have betrayed my trust! You have decieved me! Lied to me! You have touched the one thing that I loved and that was forbidden to you when she was mine!" He yelled shooting Rowena a deep loathing look. "And you let him!"

There was shocked looks on his three friends's faces. Rowena looked both shocked and hurt at the same time.

"Salazar! Are you that ill to think of such things?! I have never laid hand to Rowena in such a way to make you think so!" Gryffindor exclaimed.

_"He's lying!" _A hiss echoed all around them.

The four friends including Darien looked around in surprise. Then Slytherin then glared at the other founders of Hogwarts. "Umbra speaks the truth! Godric, you filth! You Mudblood lover! For that is what Rowena is!" He gave her a dark and hated look. "She's a Mudblood! I can't believe I gave my heart to you! You used me! You lying Delila! Curse you, Godric! Curse you, Rowena! Hell to you, Helga, you hag!" He yelled before turning away. His shoulders were shaking violently. He then turned his black eyes onto Godric. "Be warned, Gryffindor! Though I shall leave Hogwarts and never again return to this place as long as I live, but I leave you a fair warning." He said in an icy tone. "A monstrosity shall be released upon those who you love so much." He hissed before he turned and walked off into the darkness.

The darkness around Darien began to fade into a brilliant white light, blinding him as he began to return to reality. His eyes fluttered open, rather painfully at that. He could see someone sitting above him, staring down at him in concern.

"D, are...ight..." He could hear someone's voice blanking out now and then.

He blinked several times trying to clear his vision before he saw a few faces looking down at him. It was the faces of Sirius, Harry, and Remus. They were either bent down by his sides or standing above him. Darien's head was throbbing with pain and he could feel something warm on the side of his head.

"Darien, are you all right?" Remus asked again.

Darien winced as he tried to push himself up, but it only hurt more. Sirius and Remus both helped him to do so. "I've got a really bad headache." He groaned. Sirius cracked a smile while Remus looked concerned. "Well you fell and hit your head on the ground, Dari. So I don't think I can blame you." He said. Darien winced again as he looked around.

They were still in the owlery but Lionel and Rex were gone. So were the Slytherins. There were only Dumbledore, Snape, Moody, Harry, Sirius and his father, who was keeping his hand on his son's back to support him. "Where's Rex and Lionel?" He asked painfully.

Remus shook his head. "We sent them back to the Gryffindor Common room." He just told him.

Dumbledore nodded. "I'm afraid Mr. Boyd had recieved a detention for brawling as did Mr. Ewart for cursing you. Are you all right? You had quite the nasty fall so Harry has told us."

Darien reached up and touched the back of his head only to wince from the bump. "Ow!" He moaned.

Remus sighed and shook his head. "All right, Darien. You're going to the Hospital Wing." He said seriously. Darien groaned. "Dad." He groaned.

Remus gave him a very serious look. "Don't you dad me, Darien Fenrir Lupin. I won't be surprised that you have a concussion." He said helping him to his feet. Darien only groaned as he let his father lead him to the door.

He went back to the Gryffindor Commom room, still sore and very tired. He had just been lectured heavily by his father about fighting with the Slytherins. And all he had done was just sit there and take it.

"Are you all right, boy?" He heard Slytherin say.

Darien didn't look up as he walked up the moving stairs. "My head hurts but I'm fine." He said. Slytherin only nodded without saying anything else. Darien was thinking about the dream he had. He looked at Slytherin with confusion. The ghost had such a thoughtful look on his face. He looked almost nice. It was a shame that the ghost couldn't stay that way.

"What is it?" The ghost finally asked without looking at him.

Darien shook his head. "Nothing. I'm just thinking."

Slytherin looked at him with a strange look. He then stopped making Darien stop and look at him. "There's something you want to ask, so ask it." he said. Darien paused for the longest time before nodding. "I had another dream or vision of you again. But this time you were fighting with Gryffindor. It was before you left Hogwarts." He looked at the look on Slytherin's face. He could tell that the ghost knew what fight he was talking about. It was because there was a very ashamed look on Slytherin's face. "You said some horrible things to all of them, didn't you? You said horrible things to her." Darien said in a low voice.

There was a very long silence between them then the ghost turned towards Darien. "You know, I really did love her. No one could ever understand how I felt about her. Not one person would ever understand that I, Salazar Slytherin, had loved a muggleborn." He shook his head as he ran his fingers through his beard. "I may have been cold and distant to others, but it was always Rowena to know better. She wasn't just wise with the knowledge of magic. She knew how read the real me."

Darien smiled at him gently. He could see the emotions in Slytherins eyes. He knew he wasn't lying. He was being very sincere. He thought it was great that it was him, Darien Fenrir Lupin, to be the see that the once rumored most dark wizard ever was showing that he was human.

"Hey, Darien." Someone said.

The two looked over and spotted Paul making his way towards him. Darien's eyes lit up. "Paul! You're okay!" He said hurrying over.

Paul shrugged as he stopped in front of his room mate. "I guess so. But I don't feel okay."

Darien glanced at Slytherin, who nodded for him to go on. He knew that the Gryffindor student wanted to comfort his classmate. Darien shrugged looking back at Paul. "I'll bet. How are you feeling? What happened?"

A confused look appeared on Paul's face. "I don't know. I mean, I'm feeling much better now. It was like someone only knocked me out." He squinted his eyes a little. "To be honest, I saw everything happening, Darien. I don't know what happened. I remember being on my bed playing cards and then some strange feeling came over me. It was like...something was taking over me." Darien just listened to him. "I began to feel weak, like my body hadn't slept for days. I felt very hungry but not for food. I was craving for something else. I wanted to eat everything, everyone I saw. It was so weird, Darien. And I was so scared."

Darien nodded slowly. "Do you remember what happened between me and you?"

Paul slowly nodded. "Yeah. I saw what I almost did to you. And that dark voice that was coming from me, that wasn't me. I didn't actually understand what it was. It some kind weird latin language."

Darien stared at him with surprise. "Latin? Before, did you hear anyone talking to you? Like saying stuff in your head or anything?"

Paul thought for a moment then nodded. "Well, sort of. I heard someone chanting, almost singing something. It was really faint and in Latin too. I couldn't understand it though." He said. Darien only nodded as he took in the informatioin. He shrugged. "Okay. Well, you wanna go up to the common room with me?" He asked. Paul nodded. "Yeah."

The two Gryffindors walked up the Common room where everyone pounced on Paul and began asking him questions. Darien saw Lionel glaring out the window across the room so he went over to him instead. Lionel only gave him a sideways glance before going back to glaring out the window. There was a long silence between them.

"Hey, you okay?" Darien asked.

Lionel gave him a look as if he was joking. "I have a detention with that prat, Snape. Do you honestly think I'm okay?" He asked a little harsher than he meant to.

Darien was taken back a little. He hadn't expected Lionel to be mad at him. The blonde then sighed as he sat on the window sill and placed his head into his hands. "Sorry, Darien. I'm just..." He cut off with another sigh. Darien shook his head as he moved over to sit next to him. "Forget it, Lionel. The Slytherins were mean, like always."

Lione turned his head away from him. "Darien, they had a point though. I am a Nazi. At least I'm a Nazi's grandson. It was my great grandpa. He was in that whole Muggle war years and years ago. He was a soldier for one of those Concentration camps." He sound like he was losing it a little. He lowered his head and closed his eyes tightly. "I am so ashamed."

Darien shook his head as he put an arm around his friend's shoulders. "Lionel, look. I don't know what your family history was like back then but I know you. You're not a Nazi. You're German, yes. But torturing people just for you're own pleasure, hell no. What those Slytherins said were lies. It was nothing but dragon dung."

Lionel couldn't help but snort with laughter as he looked up at Darien. "Yeah, it is isn't it?"

Darien then looked up with surprise making his friend look to where he was looking. Not that he could see who was standing there because he couldn't.

Slytherin was standing next to him before he placed his hand on Lionel's shoulder or made it look like he had. What surprised Darien even more was Lionel's eyes. They had lit up very wide and he was looking at his shoulder in confusion. Darien watched him for a second trying to figure out what was wrong. "Lionel?"

Lionel looked at him with a faint grin. "Huh? Oh! I'm fine. Just...just feeling a little weird, that's all."

Darien smiled faintly. "You feel like someone's touching your shoulder, don't you?"

Lionel's eyes lit up. "You're feeling it too?" He asked in astonishment.

Darien laughed and shook his head. "No. But there is someone touching you." Lionel looked in Slytherin's direction as he remembered what Darien could do. He then shuddered and brushed at his shoulder as if trying to knock Slytherin's hand off. "Man, that's freaking me out." He said. Darien laughed while Slytherin chuckled before dematerializing.


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14.**

Later that night, Darien was suppose to go to his night lesson with Professor Caligo. He had waited till everyone was asleep before he snuck out of the Gryffindor common room, being very careful was he went down the hall. The only thing was, there was so many Aurors patrolling the halls at night. It was getting very difficult having to sneak around. He almost came very close to getting caught by one of the aurors, luckily for him, he ducked into a class room just as the aurors were passing. Darien let out a deep sigh of relief and wiped his sweating brow. His heart nearly stopped again when he heard voices close by.

"...stupid Nazi! I can't believe he broke my nose! My mother is furious. She's thinking about visiting Hogwarts and complaining." A snobby voice said angrily.

Darien, staying very low to the ground, crept over to another door of the classroom and peered in. It Whitman and his two goons. The three of them were sitting on desks and visiting. Darien rolled his eyes. 'Couldn't they do that in their Common room?' He thought bitterly.  
"Why're ye complanin'?! I've got detention wit' dat joke of a teacher, Lupin." Ewart snarled in a low tone. Darien felt his blood starting to boil. He didn't like it when someone talked trash about his father.

"Speaking of Lupin, what're we going to do about the freak?" Parkinson said.

Whitman huffed as he folded his arms and leaned back against the desk he was sitting in. "I haven't decided yet. But I'm going to do something big. So big he'll never recover." He said in a very vicious tone. Darien didn't like the sound of that. "I'm going to make him pay so bad that he's going to beg for mercy."  
Parkinson and Ewart smirked as they looked at him. "Oh really? How?" The black haired Slytherin asked. Whitman was quiet for a long minute before smirking. "I'm thinking about challenging him to a Wizard's duel. He may be a DADA teacher's kid, but I am the son of a Deatheater. My pop's been teaching me a fair few spells. By the end of the duel, Lupin's mudblood mother will be crying in fright just by the sight of him." He laughed.

Darien's teeth clenched tight as he closed his eyes to try and calm himself down. He didn't want anything else but to jump out and curse Whitman so bad that he could be stuck with the curse for the rest of his life. The only problem was there three of them and only one of him. If he did that, he would be outnumbered big time. He figured he had better get out of there before he did something he would regret later. So Darien stood up straight and turned to hurry out of the room.

Unfortunately, he hadn't been aware that there was a broom on the floor right in front of him. He stepped on it without noticing it at all before tripping over it. He gasped as he slid on the broom stick and landed hard on his back with a small cry of pain.

"What was that?!" He heard Whitman cry out.

Darien had hit his had on the ground so he was too dazed to do anything. He just rolled his eyes and blinked several times to get the dizziness out of his head. He looked up just as three heads appeared right above him. Whitman, Parkinson and Ewart sneered down at him.  
"Speak of the devil, look whose been spying on us." The rich boy sneered. Darien's eyes went wide as Ewart and Parkinson reached down and grabbed his arms. He tried to yank away but they wouldn't let go. They just pulled him to his feet, a little too fast that it just made him dizzy again. Whitman stood before him, smirking. "So what are you doing up so late, Lupin? Does Daddy know?"

Darien just struggled to get out of their grips. But Ewart and Parkinson tightened their grips on his arms till it hurt. "Ow, let go!" He whispered sharply.

Whitman held a finger up his own lips still smirking. "Shhh. You better be quiet, Lupin, or we'll all get caught." He said in a taunting way. "So, what should we do with this little prying pansy, guys?" He asked. Ewart sneered as he held a big fist close to Darien's nose. "I say we bust him up really good." He said in a threatening tone. Darien looked at him with wide eyes as he leaned back away from him. Parkinson shook his head. "Nah, then we'd really get into trouble. I say we take him to the dungeons."

Darien looked at him with even wider eyes. Whitman just smirked at his friend. "Why do that?" He asked. Parkinson sneered right at Darien. "Because Lupin here is scared of the dark, aren't you, Lupie?" He asked tauntingly.

Darien struggled even more. "Don't even think about it!" He said as he tried to pull away.

Whitman smirked as he aimed his wand and aimed. "Silenco." Darien was immediately silenced and he really couldn't do anything but silently rant and rave. The three Slytherins sniggered as they dragged Darien out of the classroom.

It took a while just to get him down to the dungeons because they had to avoid the aurors and keep Darien from trying to escape. It was only then they arrived in the dungeons with him.  
"Give our regards to the shadow monsters, Lupin." Whitman sneered as Ewart and Parkinson shoved Darien into a dark room and locked the door.  
Darien stumbled a little as he had been thrown into the room. He fell over something and went crashing to the ground with a cry of pain. He quickly sat up and looked around the dark room. It was pitch black so he couldn't even see the end of his nose. "Oh shit." He muttered as he curled up into a fetal positon and leaned against something.  
His heart was racing as if he had just ran a mile and he could hear it beating. His breathing sped up a little as he just looked around nervous in the dark. He was listening very hard for any sound at all. He knew that he was in big trouble in many ways. One, he was out of bed after curfew. It was more than likely that if was going to be caught, he was going to get a month's of detention. Two, he wasn't suppose to be alone. He was suppose to have someone with him because of the threat in Hogwarts. And three, he was in the dark where the threat was free to roam.

Darien sat there for a few seconds before he began searching his pockets for his wand. He needed light right away. He needed it to see. Problem was, he couldn't find it.  
"Crap! I must of dropped it." He said in a fearful tone. He began searching the ground for it, his hand patting the ground.

Oh, his hand touched something all right. But it wasn't his wand. He paused as soon as he hand laid on it. He froze as he squeezed it softly. It was something warm and it was definitely flesh. Darien felt his fear rising up as the hairs on his arms and the back his neck began to stand up. His breathing grew very thick as he grew more afraid. He knew he was touching something alive.

"He-hell-hello?" He asked in a trembling voice.

There was a dark chuckle from the darkness and Darien almost felt like he was going to die immediately. "Hello, Lupin." He knew that voice almost too well.

Darien jerked his hand away, throwing himself back as if he had been burned. He was hyperventlating as he curled up against what he believed to be the wall. He wrapped his arms tightly around his knees, pulling them closer to himself. "Um-Umbra..." His voice cracked a little. He heard tiny clicks as if nails were tapping the ground. He just tilted his head as he followed the sound.

"What are you doing out so late, Young Lupin? You should be getting rest like all of the rest of the students." The dark voice spoke in the darkness.

Darien shivered as he heard it moving closer. He was breathing very fast and hard as he turned his head to look in the direction he heard the voice. He could feel someone breathing on him. He could not hold back the whimper of fear.

The Umbra in the dark gave a low, cruel laugh. "Oh, dear. Am I scaring you, Lupin?" He heard it tsking.

'Wand, where are you?' Darien thought fearfully. 'I need my wand. Wand, come to me please. Come to me.' He thought over and over again.  
Just then, he felt his hand touch something beside him. Or at least it touched his hand. He had jumped a little but then relized that it wasn't the Umbra. It was long and wooden.  
'My wand!' He thought as he snatched it up and held it high. "Lumos!" He said quickly. He was happy that there was now light in the room. But he just wasn't ready for what he saw.

As soon as the light was on, he saw that black bat like face right in front of his. The red eyes gleaming at him in the light which flinched when the light touched them. Darien felt his scream rising up in his throat but it just wouldn't come out. He tried to move away but couldn't because there was something behind him.  
The creature, however, let out an awful screech and took into the air to get away from the light.

Darien flinched when it flew close to his head, trying to knock the wand out of his hand but he kept a good hold of it as he held it high and buried his head into his arm. He quickly stood and rushed for the door.

Just as he reached it, it opened and he crashed right into someone. There was a small "oof" and both of them staggered back. Darien looked wild eyed up at who he had run into only to see the least person he would have wanted to see, besides the Umbra. Professor Snape sneering down at him. "Well, well,well. A Gryffindor student out of bed. How quaint." He said in a cool tone. Darien felt his throat dry up but he spun around looking into the darkened room. There was no sign of anyone or anything in the room. The Umbra had vanished back inside the shadows. Snape was just looking down at him before looking at the room. "So, what are you doing out of bed, Lupin? And what were you doing in this room?"

Darien looked up at him fearfully. "Professor Snape...the Umbra was in there. You've got to believe me." He said pointing at the room.

Snape only narrowed his eyes at him before they flicked over to the room. He pulled out his wand and motioned for Darien to move aside, who immediately obeyed. Snape stepped into the room, illuminating every corner. It was just an old potions closet so that Darien could see. It was practically empty, except a few boxes.

Snape looked around the room before turning back to Darien with a cold stare. "Well, if it was in there, it sure isn't now. What were you doing out of bed, Lupin?" He asked in suspicion. Darien didn't answer. He wasn't suppose to tell anyone about his lessons with Professor Caligo. It had been one of the rules. So Darien only stared at the annoyed looking Snape. "Well, if you do not tell me, Gryffindor will lose 50 points." The annoyed Professor said.

Darien still didn't say anything. He knew that Snape would just take off the points anyway.

Snape's lip curled into a snarl. "50 points off Gryffindor for being out of bed after curfew and ten more points for refusing to answer a question! Oh! And I think a detention will do as well!" He snapped.

Darien had to bite his tongue to keep himself from snapping out at the Professor. He couldn't believe how impossible Snape was. "Yes, sir." He forced out.

Snape sneered at him. "Get back to your house right this instant! And believe me, I will have a talk with your father about your little midnight walk." He barked. Darien couldnt' do anything but quickly listen. He turned around and hurried away. He would have to wait till morning to explain to Professor Caligo about why he didn't meet with him. He hoped that he would understand. Darien could still feel Snape's eyes on him. He was pretty sure that the Professor was tailing him to make sure he was going to the Gryffindor Tower like he was suppose to.

When Darien reached the Fat Lady's portrait, he snapped the password then stormed inside. He would just have to go to bed now that he was late for the night lesson.  
Grumbling, he went up to his room and climbed into bed, cursing Snape. He growled as he looked out the window at the sky. He could feel the chill in the air. He just had a feeling that things were going to get very weird.

The next few days were not fun at all for Darien. He had recieved the worst lecture in his life from his father. So happens, Snape kept his promise about talking to Remus about Darien's behavior. And Remus was not only upset that Darien would have made such a risk of wandering around after curfew, he was pissed.

"Darien, this is very serious. You were wandering around the halls at night, when that is against the rules. Not to mention, we have a crazy demon who is threatening you. You were playing right into his hands, claws, whatever he has. What were you doing, Darien?" Remus asked in a scold.

Darien didn't look at him as he looked quite forlorn. "I wasn't doing anything, Dad. I was just taking a walk."

Remus just stared at him with a suspicious look. He didn't look too happy at all. He knew that Darien was lying to him. He couldn't hide the disappointment in his eyes. Darien lowered his head, feeling a little ashamed of himself. He didn't want to lie to his father but Professor Caligo had told him that he wasn't suppose to tell anyone. He ashamed that he couldn't tell his father. "Darien."

He looked up at Remus, who was frowning at him. "I wish you would just tell me. You may have a reason not to, but I just wish you would. It would hurt me so much if I lost you." Remus said in a low voice.

Darien faintly smiled as he stood up straight. "Dad, you're not going to lose me." He promised.

Remus's mouth twitched a little as his face softened. "I hope you're right. But no more wandering the halls at night, All right?"

Darien paused for a long second before nodding. "All right." He then was pulled into a hug by his father.

"You still are going to do your detention." Remus muttered to him. Darien groaned making his father laugh.

Darien walked into the Gryffindor Tower where Lionel and Rex were waiting for him. They both gave him faint smiles as he walked over to them. "So, we heard you got detention. What happened?" The small Gryffindor asked. Darien plopped down in his chair, shaking his head. "Believe me, you don't want to know." He reassured them.  
The two only nodded as they went back to their work. "Darien, tell us a little more about this whole situation." Lionel said.

Darien knew what he was talking about. He was talking about the situation with the Umbra and Slytherin's past. "Well, it's complicated. That's for sure. My dreams are just so weird. They have so much to do with Slytherin, though I'm not exactly sure why I'm the one that's seeing them." He told them in a low voice.  
Lionel glanced at him from the essay. "You know, that sounds just too weird. How in the hell is it that you even have that kind of power?"  
Darien shook his head. "I'm not even sure. I mean, look at me. I'm just a bloody kid for god's sake. Why me?" he asked with a sigh as he slumped back into his chair.

"I couldn't possibly say, myself."

Darien jumped a little at hearing his voice. Both Lionel and Rex had jumped because Darien had. They looked at their friend in confusion while he rolled his eyes. "Slytherin, I wish you wouldn't do that. Gods, what are you trying to do? Scare me to death?" He grumbled as he looked near the window. Lionel and Rex looked over with him, though they couldn't see anything.

The grumpy ghost only turned a cool smile onto him. "Don't talk to me about death, boy. For I know all about it."

Something flashed in Darien's mind. Something he had questioned himself once before. He looked up at Slytherin with surprise. "Slytherin, about death. How did you die anyway?"

That really got Lionel and Rex's attention. "Hey, that's a fair question. How did Slytherin die?" The blonde asked.

A distant look appeared on Slytherin's face as he just glanced at the three Gryffindors. He then looked back out the window, his arms falling to his sides. There was a very long silence. "I don't remember." He then turned to look at him. "That's the thing about being a ghost. You don't exactly remember how you died or who killed you. Especially when you're a ghost as old as I am. I've been a ghost for a thousand years. I've forgotten." Darien just slowly nodded.

"Dari, what did he say?" Rex asked, poking his friend in the shoulder.

Darien looked at him. "He doesn't remember." He told them. Both Rex and Lionel looked at the window, where Slytherin was standing. They looked a little sorry for the ghost. Darien shook his head. "So you don't remember anything about the day you died, right? Nothing at all?"

The ghost only shook his head. "Nothing." He told him.

Darien stared at him for a long time before slowly shaking his head. "What is the last thing you remember?" He asked. Slytherin shook his head. "I don't remember anything. The only thing I do remember is before I left Hogwarts. I finished a journal of mine and left it here in the castle. I remember I had written something in it that had to do something with my death. I had seen a vision of it once before. I am very gifted in the art of Divination. That is why my wand has something to do with it."

Darien's eyes squinted a little as he glanced at his two confused looking friends. "A journal? What kind of journal?"

The ghost shook his head. "My journal while I was here in Hogwarts. I wrote everything down. I had even drawn a few pictures on the pages. It would have been rather hard to read for one who does not know Latin. For all of the words I had written down, they were all in Latin."

Darien's world had did a flip right over his head as his eyes grew wide. Everything just seemed to stop for him as he thought about the book. The journal in Flourish and Botts. "The journal."

Slytherin turned around giving him a questioning look while Lionel and Rex looked interested. "Journal? What journal?" The blonde Gryffindor asked. Darien looked at his friends. "There was a journal in Flourish and Botts. It was all written in Latin!"  
Slytherin quickly hovered closer, bending down to one knee next to him with a very alerted look on his face. "You've seen my journal?!"

Darien shook his head. "I don't know if it was your journal. But it was written in latin."

Rex's eyes lit up. "Hey! Was it a black leather book with no title on it?!" He asked. Darien and Slytherin both looked at him with wide eyes. "You saw it too?!" The young student asked. Rex grinned. "Yeah! I even read a little bit of it when Mr. Botts wasn't looking!"

Slytherin stood up staring at the little Gryffindor. "What did it say?" Darien repeated the question for him.

Rex shook his head as he looked away for a second. "Uh...I'm not exactly sure. It was a while ago. I think one page said, 'In the pit of darkness, there laid the monster I have placed upon there. The monster of gloom and calamity shall do my bidding when I ask of it'." He paused for a second, thinking hard. "It also said something about the dark forest. But I can't remember too well."

Slytherin hovered back looking at the little Gryffindor with wide eyes. _"The dark woods to be thy doom, will your life the darkness will consume."_

Darien looked at him with surprise. "What?"

The grumpy ghost looked back at him. "The dark forest. There is something there, I believe that might have something to do with how I died." He told him.

Darien was quiet for a long time before he looked at Lionel and Rex. "The dark forest. Slytherin said that there might be something in it that could have something to do with his death."

His two friends glanced at one another. "So...what should we do about it? We can't go into the dark forest. It's dangerous." The little Gryffindor said. Darien nodded with a shrug. "I know. Besides, we don't know what we would be looking for. That forest is huge. It would take a whole year just to search it." He said. Lionel nodded in agreement. "I say we don't even risk it. Risking our necks like that would be stupid."

The ghost of Slytherin nodded as he looked Lionel over. "He's right. Don't you dare do anything with the Dark Forest. That would just be playing right into Umbra's hands."

Darien nodded in agreement. "Yeah. That would be stupid. But what about the book? Your journal?"

Lionel pushed his long bangs out of his eyes. "We should see if we can get a hold of it. Maybe we can read it and find out more about what's in it." He said. Darien shook his head. "But that's the thing. It wasn't for sale. Mr. Botts didn't even like me touching it. What makes you think we can get a hold of it?"

Rex shrugged. "Well, Christmas break is coming up soon. Maybe one of us can go to Diagon Alley and try to get it." He suggested.

Lionel gave a short, harsh laugh. "Oh yeah. Like that's going to work, Rex. If it wasn't for sale earlier in the year, it wouldn't be now. If we tried to steal the thing, it would only give us a ticket to Azkaban Prison for thievery."

Darien's breath was caught immediately as a thought came to his mind. He smiled just thinking about it. "We might not be able to get it, but a grown up can." He said giving his two friends a sly smile. Lionel, Rex and Slytherin gave him a confused look. "What?" All three asked.  
Darien just smiled as he quickly stood up. "A grown up could get the book. And not just any grown up. An Auror." Lionel and Rex just looked at one another with confusion.

"Harry!" Darien called as he and his two friends hurried down the hall. The ghost of Slytherin was hovering right behind them.

The jet black haired Auror turned away from his best friend, Ron Weasley, and looked at the three. He faintly smiled a greeting to them. "Hello, Darien. Is everything all right?"

Darien tossed his bangs out before speaking. "Harry, I need to talk to you. It's important."

Harry and Ron looked at one another before looking at the first year with concern. "Dari, what's wrong? Did something happen?" The red head asked seriously. Darien looked at him before shrugging. "Well...nothing bad. It's just I need to tell Harry something. Of course, you can hear it too, Uncle Ron. Maybe it'd be best." He said. Harry slowly noded before turning towards the closest door. "Come with us."

The two aurors lead the three students and unbeknownest to them, the Slytherin ghost to the door, which happened to be the empy Ancient Runes classroom. Harry shut the door behind everyone before turning to Darien, who sat on a desk. "All right, D. What's this all about?"

Darien took a deep breath then began to explain about the journal in Flourish and Botts and what Slytherin had said. Both Aurors looked quite astonished by the time he was done. Of course, Ron had heard a little about what was going on in Hogwarts but he had not heard about there being a ghost of Slytherin hanging around. And now hearing about it, it freaked him out just a little.

"So, you're saying that the ghost of Salazar Slytherin is in Hogwarts right this second?" He asked, looking at Darien with disbelief. Darien nodded. Ron shook his head as he rubbed the back of it. "Talking about mental. Are you sure that you didn't hit your head on something?"

Darien and Harry rolled their eyes while Slytherin looked a little moody. "Ron, he's telling the truth. I might not be able to see Slytherin like Dari can but I know something's up." The Auror turned to the first year. "So your friends know all about it, huh?"

Darien nodded slowly. "I couldn't lie to them anymore, Harry. They had to know. They're my friends."

Harry just smiled softly as he looked Lionel and Rex over then nodded back to Darien. "I understand that, Darien. That's how it was with my friends and I. I couldn't hide anything from them either." He smiled at Ron next, who was smiling too. They turned their eyes back to Darien. "So about this book, are you sure it's Slytherin's journal?" Harry asked.

Darien glanced over at Slytherin, hovering in the corner before nodding to Harry. "I think so. Slytherin says it is." He told him.

Ron glanced up at the spot Darien did before giving the boy a look. "Is that ghost here now?" He asked. Darien looked at him before nodding. "Yeah. He's right there." He pointed to where Slytherin was. Ron just stared at the empty spot where the ghost was suppose to be. He then shook his head. "I swear you're going to drive me to the nutter house."

The boys only laughed before shaking their heads. "Thing is, Harry and Ron, we just need to see the book. Show it to Slytherin to see if it really is his journal. If it is, he said that there's an entry in it that says about how he died. It might even tell us about Umbra and how to defeat him."

Harry looked away with a very thoughtful look on his face. There was a long silence between everyone before the famous Auror nodded slowly. He looked from each to the empty space where Slytherin was suppose to be then to Ron. He gave another nod before speaking. "We'll go get the journal. If Mr. Bott's won't allow us to take it, then we'll get a warrent from Kingsley. Then we'll bring it back here to see if it really is Slytherin's journal. If it isn't, then we'll give it back to Flourish and Botts." He then gave Darien a serious look. "You better hope that it is Slytherin's journal, Darien. Because if it isn't and we have to use a warrent just to get it, we're going to be in serious trouble. Ron and I could easily lose our jobs doing this, you know."

Darien now had a worried look on his face. He didn't want to get Harry and Ron into trouble for a book. But he was really anxious on seeing this book too. He slowly nodded. "We all better hope that it's Slytherin's journal and it will help us know how to take care of Umbra." He said. Everyone slowly nodded. "Otherwise, we'll all be in trouble." Lionel added. All five wizards and the ghost looked at one another with worry.


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15.**

Two weeks after Darien had spoken to Harry and Ron about Slytherin's journal, Christmas break was approaching. Everyone in the castle was starting to pack up their things for the break. Most of every one of the students were going home. Except a few unfortunate students. Rex and Samara being two.

"So why aren't you going home again?" Lionel asked as he put some of his things into his trunk.

Rex sat cross legged on his bed, his face flushing a little as he answered. "I just want to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas, that's all. Besides, my parents are going to Cancun for Christmas. They wanted me to go with but I just didn't want to." He told Lionel and Darien.

For some reason, Darien could smell something in the air. And it was coming from Rex. It confused him a little that he was smelling something like that. Because he was a werewolf, his senses had sharpened just a little. Especially his sense of smell. And what he was smelling, he was sure it was uneasiness. He even stared at his small friend, who was now pretending to find an interest in picking at fuzzballs in his blankets.

"Rex, is there something you want to tell us?" Darien asked as he stopped putting things into his own trunk.

Rex looked up at him before forcing a smile. "No, no. Happy Christmas, that's all." He told him. Darien and Lionel only looked at one another in suspicion but didn't pursue in asking.

Later, Darien was meeting his father and Sirius for lunch. They would be going home together later that night. Lionel and Leoni had already left at their parents's request. As Darien walked into the Great Hall, he caught sight of Sam sitting by herself, eating hot oatmeal. He glanced over in the direction of his father and 'Uncle' before making his way over to where Sam was. She had glanced up at him when she saw him from the corner of her eye. "Hey, Sam. Aren't you going home for Christmas?"

Sam shook her head as she shoveled oatmeal into her mouth before looking at him. She swallowed before answering. "I already told you in the beginning of the year that my parents and I don't get along. I don't really want to go home for the break."

Darien sat down, leaning against the table as he looked at her. "What about your aunt? Aren't you going home to see her?"

Sam forced a smile as she looked at him. "No. My aunt usually has this crazy Christmas party with a bunch of old maids on Christmas Eve and they do some of the weirdest things. Don't even ask about it. You don't want to know." She told him with a short laugh.  
Darien couldn't help but laugh with her.

A long silence passed between them before Darien shrugged. "Samara, I hope you have a great Christmas. Maybe I'll send you something." He said starting to stand up.

Sam grabbed his arm to hold him in place as she gave him a look. "Why did you call me Samara? I thought I told you to call me Sam."

Darien shrugged again. "It's your name. Besides, I think it's kind of a good name." He said honestly. Sam just stared at him before she released his arm. "And why are you going to send me something? We're not friends. We don't hang out or anything." She said. Darien only smiled as he stood up. "Why not? We're both Gryffindors and we do hang out sometimes. We might not get along because of how Lionel is with you, but seriously, there's nothing wrong with being friends. Besides, I want to be nice to you."

Sam couldn't help but smirk at him for that. "Whatever. If you want to send me something, fine. But don't expect a present from me." She told him.

Darien only smiled as he backed away. He didn't care either way. He knew he was getting a lot of things for Christmas anyway. One present short wouldn't matter to him. "Fine. Happy Christmas, Sam." He said turning away. He was only five feet away when he heard her say, "Happy Christmas, Darien." He smiled to himself without looking back at her.

Remus and Sirius had been watching Darien from their seats as he talked to Sam Grogen. They both smiled as they watched them before looking at one another.  
"Do you think Dari might have a crush on that girl?" Sirius asked.  
Remus shook his head. "No. They don't really get along too well. I think he's just being nice to her. You know how Darien is." He said as he took up a spoon full of sugar and sprinkled it onto his hot oatmeal. "Besides, he's still at the age where he thinks girls have cooties or whatever eleven year olds call them nowadays." Sirius laughed into his warm milk before swallowing.

Darien finally approached them, giving them a smile as he stepped up to his father's side. Remus returned the smile. "You have all of your things together?" He asked. His son only nodded as he pulled up a chair. "Yeah, dad. I've got all of my things together."

Sirius grinned as he nodded towards Sam. "You sweet on her?"

Darien pulled a face as he gave his 'uncle' a look. "Ew! Sirius! Don't be gross!"

The caretaker only laughed along with his best friend. Darien caught sight of Rex entering the Great Hall now. The young Gryffindor sat next to Sam and they struck up a conversation together. Darien just frowned, feeling a little concerned about his small friend. He had remembered their earlier conversation about going home for Christmas break. He wondered if his father or Sirius knew the real reason why Rex wasn't going. So he decided to ask.  
"Dad?" He earned a low grunt in reply. He knew that his father was still listening. "I'm worried about Rex."

Remus finally looked at him from his breakfast. Sirius was looking interested too. "What about Rex?"

Darien shook his head as he folded his arms and rest them on the table. "Well, it's hard to explain. He says he's not going home for Christmas because his parents are going to Cancun and he didn't want to go. But...when he said it, I could tell he was a little uneasy about telling me the real reason. I know he was lying."

Remus glanced across the room towards the little Gryffindor before breathing out a low sigh. He looked back at Darien, who was looking very curious in deed. He glanced over at Sirius, who glanced right back at him. They were quiet for a minute before they both shook their heads. "Darien," His father started. He looked back at his son. "If Rex didn't tell you the real reason, may be he doesn't want you to know. It might be a little embarrassing or hard for him to tell you."

Darien just stared at him. "Huh? But why? Why would it be hard?"

The DADA teacher sighed again, looking away. "Sirius?"

"I'm on it." Sirius said before turning to Darien. "D, if you must know, Rex doesn't have a family. He lost them years ago."

That surprised Darien quite a bit. He sat up straighter, dropping his arms from the table. "What?"

Remus finally turned his eyes onto his son again. "I suppose he told you about his family, hm? What did he say?"

Darien shrugged, still a little surprised what he had just learned. "He said that he was the only child of his family, that his family was very small. But..." He stopped.

Remus slowly nodded, raising his eyebrows at that. "Well, that's sort of true. He was the only child. And he is muggle born. If you really want to know what really happened to his family, you best ask Rex." He told him.

Darien looked back towards his little friend. He then faintly smiled as he looked at his father. "If he doesn't have any where to go, can he come home with us? For Christmas?"

The two men both cracked smiles as they looked right at Darien. They clearly liked that idea. "Why don't you ask him? I wouldn't mind and I know your mother wouldn't either." said Remus.

Darien nodded as he quickly stood and hurried down towards the Gryffindor table. He was also thinking about asking Rex what really happened. But if his friend didn't want to tell him, why bother asking? He knew that it would only hurt Rex if he told him that he asked his father about his family without permission. So he decided to keep it to himself. He smiled at Rex when the small Gryffindor looked up.

Rex returned the smile with a wave and his own smile. "Hey, Darien. I thought you already left."

Darien shook his head as he knelt onto the bench, beside Sam. "Nope. Not yet. Actually, Rex, I was wondering since you aren't going home for Christmas break," He paused seeing the smile fading away from the smaller's face but he continued without missing a beat. ", why don't you come home with me and my father for Christmas?"

Rex just stared at him with a frown before he slowly shook his head. "I don't think I should, Dari. I don't want to be in the way of your family for Christmas."

Both Darien and Sam frowned. The Gryffindor girl was now giving Darien a look as if daring him to agree. But he wasn't. He just shook his head. "Rex, you wouldn't be in the way. You're one of my best mates. You would be more than welcome. Besides, my dad said it was already okay." He told him.

There was a long silence before Rex smiled at him. "You really want me to come to your house for Christmas?"

Darien smiled right back. "Of course I do, Rex. I already said that your my best mate. How many times do I have to say that?" He asked with a little humor. Rex looked extremely touched at the invitation. He was trying hard to keep tears from coming and it was somewhat working. "I would really like that, Dari. Thank you." He said. Darien and Sam both smiled. "Well, then go get your stuff together. We'll be leaving in an hour."  
Rex nodded before he bolted away for the door.

Sam laughed a little as she watched him with Darien. Then she turned her attention to the other Gryffindor. "That was really nice, Darien. What you did for Rex. He was feeling a little down because he was staying."

Darien nodded with a faint smile. "I know."

* * *

Hermione was just putting the roast beef into the pot while she conjured up a large pitcher of Kool-aid, when she heard the boys yelling happily. She smiled when she heard her beloved Moony's voice. She put the roast beef into the oven before going into the front room. There, she saw her husband and son. But they were also accompanied by Sirius and another boy she remembered seeing once. She didn't say anything about it as she hurried over to Remus, who smiled. "Swiftstar, did you miss me?" He asked in a teasing way. Hermione smiled as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a very passionate kiss. 

"Ewww! Mom! Dad!" Darien, James and Peter complained.

"Get a room, you two!" Sirius laughed.

Rex only laughed as he nudged Darien. Hermione giggled between her's and Remus's kiss before she pulled away and hugged him tightly. After a minute she turned to hug Darien next. "Darien, I'm so glad you're home." She said kissing him on the forehead. Darien's face flushed a little as he groaned. "Mom. Quit embarrassing me in front of my friend."

Everyone laughed while Hermione turned her eyes onto the small Gryffindor. "Well, I know I've seen you before but I've never had the pleasure of learning your name. You're either Lionel or Rex that Darien has told me about. Am I correct?"

Rex nodded as he felt his face flush a little. "I'm Rex Rory Kegerreis, ma-am. Professor Lupin and Dari was kind enough to inviting me to stay with your family for Christmas. I hope you don't mind."

Darien laughed as he nudged his friend. "Are you kidding? This is my mom you're talking to, Rex." He laughed.

Hermione only smiled as she stepped closer to Rex, gently touching his cheek. "You're more than welcome on staying, Rex. Welcome to our home." She said before she planted a soft kiss on his forehead. Rex's face went completely red from blushing. Everyone only laughed together.  
Sirius grinned as Hermione turned her eyes onto him. "Do I get a kiss and a hug too, Swift?" He asked grinning. Hermione rolled her eyes as she gave him the sweetest smile. "No. But you will get chores. You can do the dishes tonight, Siri."  
"Awwww! Hermione!" Sirius groaned. Once again everyone burst into laughter.

Darien led Rex up to his room, still laughing about Hermione already giving Sirius chores. "Man, your family is so great, Darien. You are so lucky." The small Gryffindor said. Darien only smiled at him. "Well, I will admit it that my family are great. The little brothers can be annoying though." He laughed with Rex, who only shook his head. "I wish my parents had more kids. It would have been nice if I had a brother to spend time with."

Darien gave him a sad smile. "Would have been? Why can't your mom have any kids now?" He was trying to get Rex to come clean. He wanted to know what really happened to his family. But the look on Rex's face made him change his mind.

Rex looked extremely embarrassed and scared at once. And to answer Darien's question, he said, "Uh, mom just couldn't have any more kids after me. I don't know why. She just couldn't."

The werewolf Gryffindor didn't push any further. He was going to wait till Rex was ready. Instead he decided to introduce him to his favorite person. He dropped his trunk onto the floor and told Rex to do the same. "Well, you haven't met everyone in our family yet, Rex. Come on. I want you to meet Draco." He said hurrying out of the room. Rex just hurried after him.

The two of them hurried to the black door and pushed it open to enter the darkened room. Darien could see Rex now looking around nervously as if waiting for something to jump out and attack them. He only shook his head as he walked over to the slumbering nurse by the bed.  
"Ms. Keanley." He spoke.

The nurse jerked awake and looking embarrassed. "Yes! I'm sorry. I didn't mean..." She paused when she saw that it was just Darien. She smiled shaking her head. "Ah, young master Darien. You gave me a fright. What a surprise. I didn't know you were home yet. What can I do for you?"

Darien just shook his head as he looked towards the black drapes around the bed. "Just came to see Draco that's all."

The nurse nodded as she stood up. "All right. Just don't be long, okay? He does need his rest."

Darien nodded, watching her leave. Rex finally stepped closer. "Uh, Darien. Are we allowed to be in here?" He asked. Darien only nodded as he walked over to the bed. "Yeah. I come in here all the time to visit him." He said. Rex tilted his head. "Visit who?"  
Darien didn't speak until he pulled back the curtains. "Draco Malfoy, of course."

Rex stared with wide eyes down at the slumbering young man. He couldn't believe his eyes. Lying before him was Draco Malfoy.

"That's Draco Malfoy?" Rex asked, in astonishment.

Darien nodded as he moved closer. "Yeah. He's really cool when he's not in a grumpy mood. Which is most of the time. He keeps asking me when I'll find the Dementor with his soul. You know, it's not easy trying to track down a Dementor when your an 11 year old kid."

Rex stared at him with surprise. "You mean, you've been able to talk to Draco Malfoy even though his soul was taken by a Dementor?"

Darien nodded. "Yeah. Why does that seem so surprising?"

The little Gryffindor just shook his head. "It's just, I never heard of this at all. This kind of power. It's so weird that you can do all of that stuff." He said. Darien nodded as he looked back down at Draco Malfoy. "I know. I don't even know why it's me that can do it." His eyes then lit up, brightly. "Draco! You're finally awake! How's it going?"

Rex looked confused as he looked down at the man lying before him. He didn't think Draco was awake. His eyes were closed and he looked like he was still slumbering. "Uh, Darien. Who are you talking to?"

Darien looked at him then pointed at the white blonde haired man. "Draco, of course. His spirit is awake now. We can talk to him now." He looked back at Draco. "Hey, Draco. This is Rex. He's one of my best mates at Hogwarts."  
He then launched into a full story about what was going on at the school. He didn't leave anything out. Rex just sat down and listened.

Finally he finished. There was a very long silence and it felt a little awkward for Rex. He didn't understand what was going on. But finally Darien nodded. "That's right, Draco. I've met Salazar Slytherin. He's an okay guy. Kind of grumpy though. Dad and mom knows of course. It was because I'm a werewolf just like dad." He sighed not looking happy. "All well. But I'm just worried about Umbra. He's inside Hogwarts and terrorizing everyone. Mostly me. I'm really scared, Draco." He said, glancing at Rex, who gave him a sympathedic look.  
There was another long silence before Darien shook his head. "Not really. Slytherin says that I have some kind of power that Umbra wants to use." He then glanced at Rex before deciding to tell him now. There wasn't any way of Professor Caligo finding out anyway. He then told Draco and Rex about the lessons that the Divination Professor wanted him to take.

Rex looked surprised but didn't say anything until Darien was done. "So, you're taking Divination Lessons?"

Darien nodded as he waved a hand for him to lower his voice. "Yeah. But don't tell my parents or anyone. Professor Caligo doesn't anyone to know. I wasn't even suppose to tell you. Plus my parents don't want me to do it. They wanted me to wait for everyone else. I'm doing it because it might help us figure out how to get rid of Umbra." He frowned and shot Draco a look. "What? What do you mean I can't trust him? He's a Hogwarts Teacher, Draco. Why shouldn't I trust him?"

There was a long silence.

"Huh?" Darien asked looking very confused.

Rex looked at him. "What? What did he say?"

Darien looked at him. "Huh? Oh! He said that there's something fishy with Professor Caligo. He said that the Dementor with his soul has been near the castle and he did get some bad vibes from the Divination Professor. He wants me to be careful."

Rex slowly nodded. "I think he's right, Dari. You need to be careful. You never know, Umbra could be using Professor Caligo."

Darien shook his head. "But he said that if I have a more open mind I can defeat Umbra." he looked back at Draco as if he said something. "Well that's what he said."

Rex pulled a face. "What did he say this time?"

"Oh. Sorry, Rex. I keep forgetting that you can't hear him. He said that I shouldn't have an open mind. An open mind is what makes Umbra get in." Darien ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm so confused. I think that the only way to actually know is to get a hold of Slytherin's journal. It might tell us what we need to know." Rex nodded.  
They sat there talking to Draco's sleeping form until someone knocked on the door.  
The two of them turned to see Sirius standing there. He gave them a faint smile as he entered. "Hey, Darien, Rex. Dinner's going to be ready in an hour. But your grandparents are here. So come see them."

Darien nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Uncle Sirius. Oh! Is Harry going to come over?'

Sirius shrugged. "Who knows. You know how the Aurors are. They get so busy. It's more than likely not." Then he left.

Darien and Rex glanced at one another. "Hey, Darien. You asked about Harry because of the journal, didn't you?" He asked. Darien nodded. "Yeah. As soon as we have the journal, the sooner we can find out about the Umbra." He said. Rex nodded. "Good point. And hopefully it'll tell us about how to get rid of it." He said then they went down stairs.

* * *

Christmas at The Lupin Residence was just like every other one. Only the fact was, both Darien and Rex was constantly being bugged by James and Peter. A few times Darien had to threaten them to leave them alone. Of course, he got in trouble for it.

Finally it was Christmas Eve.

They were having a Christmas party. Everyone was invited to come. Darien and Rex were both excited. They had found out that most of the Order of the Phoenix was going to be there. So was the Weasley family. That would mean Ron would show up too. And hopefully Harry Potter would. Darien still wanted to find out about the journal. He just couldn't wait till they finally arrived.

The house was highly decorated with Christmas. Christmas carols were drifting in the air while Hermione was cooking an excellent meal with her mother's help. The Grangers were going to join them all for Christmas dinner this year so they would get to see what a true magical Christmas would be like. The children were outside having a snowball fight while the adults were busy doing whatever. Darien and Rex had helped build a snow fort so they could use in the snowball fight. They were winning the snowball fight against James and Peter until Sirius and Remus joined in on the boys's side.  
Hermione laughed as she watched from the window as her oldest son and his friend were getting whitewashed.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione."

Hermione turned to see Harry and Ginny walking into the room. She gave them both a smile. "Harry, Ginny, I'm so glad you could make it." She said as she went over and hugged her friends.

Ginny gave her a quick hug before handing her a few pies. "I baked a batch of Cinnimon Apple pies for dessert. I hope you'll enjoy them."

Hermione smiled as she took a few of the pies and set them on the counter. "Ginny, your cinnimon apple pies are the best. Better than mine. If no one enjoys them, then they don't have a sense of taste." The three laughed together.

Harry gave Ginny a hug before looking at Hermione. "Mione, where's Darien? I need to see him for a moment."

Hermione gave him a square look as she folded her arms. "He's out back having a snowball fight. What do you need him for?" She asked. Harry shook his head with a smile. "I just want to Happy Christmas and see how he's doing. I've just been a little worried about him lately."

Hermione sighed with a nod. "I know what you mean, Harry. I'm just waiting for something bad to happen." She looked out the window at her son. "I'm just so afraid that I'm going to lose him, Harry. I've never been so scared in my life."

Harry and Ginny both looked at one another before they gave her a smile. "Hermione, you're not going to lose Darien. He's a strong willed boy. Plus we're all looking out for him." The beautiful red head said softly. Hermione gave Ginny a smile. "I know you're right, Gin. I just can't help but worry."

Harry nodded. "Don't worry, Herms. Nothing's going to happen to him. I promise." He then turned and went outside.

Darien spotted Harry right away while throwing a snowball at his father. He grinned the very second Harry had come outside. "Harry!" He said happily. Everyone turned and smiled when the spotted him.  
"Harry, good to see you." Sirius said walking over, meeting Harry in a handshake.

"I'm glad to be here. Ginny's here too." Harry said. He then shook Remus's hand before having to jump back when two little boys came running at him. "Uncle Harry!" James and Peter cheered. Harry laughed as he caught them both in a hug. "James! Peter! My, you're getting so big! Last time I saw you were this tall." He said holding up his hand as if to measure the boys. The boys just laughed. Harry then looked at Darien. "Darien, Rex, how are you two doing? Having fun?"

Both Gryffindors nodded brightly. "Yes, sir!" The small one said. Everyone laughed again.

Remus then made his way towards the house. "I think I'll go see how dinner is coming along. James, Peter, come along." The younger Lupins all whinned but followed their father.

Sirius just laughed as he looked at Harry. "Harry, how are you doing?"

Harry nodded. "I'm doing just fine, Sirius. Works been a little tough lately, but never better." He then cleared his throat. "Um, Sirius. I need to speak to Darien and Rex real quick. Then we'll come inside."

Sirius paused before slowly nodded. "Ah, I see. Okay. I wanted to go steal a few vittles from Hermione anyway. See you in a bit?" Harry nodded as he watched his Godfather walk into the house.

Darien and Rex both knew that what Harry had to say must have had something to do with the journal so they paid a real good attention to him. "Harry, did you get it?" The young Lupin asked. Harry looked at him before shaking his head. "Darien, that book was very hard to get. It took a while trying to get Mr. Botts to hand it over but after bringing Shacklebolt into the fray, we managed to get a hold of it." He said as he reached into his robes and pulled out the small black leather back book.

Darien smiled brightly as soon as he seen it. It was the very same book he had seen at the book shop. "That's it! That's the book that I saw!"

Harry rose an eyebrow as he handed it to him. "Yeah. But the question is, is it Slytherin's journal? It better be, Dari. Because I will be in trouble for taking that."

Darien nodded as he opened the book and examined it. He frowned looking very disappointed. "It's all in latin though. I can't read Latin."

Rex grinned. "Then let me read it."

Both Darien and Harry looked at him in surprise. "You can read latin?" The young Gryffindor asked. Rex nodded as he took the book from him. "Just a little. My mom used to be a Professor at a school." He grinned at his best friend. "A language Professor. So eventually I'll know a little." He said before looking at the book.

There was a long pause as Rex flipped to the front of the book and looked it over. He looked like he was having just a little trouble reading the cursive hand writing but then he nodded with satisfaction.

"Can you read it, Rex?" Darien asked.

Rex looked at him before nodding. "Yeah. Just a little." He then pointed at the first sentence in the entire book. "This says, _'A name is the most important thing to one person. For if one did not have one, there would be no point in socializing with other people. Therefore, my name is Salazar Slytherin'._ Yeah, this is Slytherin's journal all right."

Harry looked very much happier to hear that it was what they were looking for.

Darien grinned. "Awesome! Now we can find out how to get rid of Umbra! What does it say about it?"

Rex flipped through the pages, carefully glancing through it before shaking his head. "Darien, look at this thing. I can't just find anything without reading it thorough."

Harry nodded as he looked at Darien. "He's right, Darien. You should probably read it from beginning to end. It might take a while but we have that much time. Mr. Botts will want that book back though when you're done with it. He wasn't happy that we took it."

Darien nodded. "We should probably get started on reading it right now."

Harry shook his head as he made Rex close the book. "Not right now, Darien. It's Christmas Eve. What you need to do is go get cleaned up for dinner. Everyone's going to be here soon." he said.

Darien nodded. "All right. Come on, Rex."

The two young students hurried into the house and up to Darien's room.  
"You want me to read it right now, don't you, Darien?" Rex asked as they entered the room. Darien shrugged. "Well, yeah. But if you don't want to..." he was saying. The little Gryffindor quickly shook his head. "No! That's all right. I actually want to read this book." He said now opening the book. Darien nodded. "Okay. What does it say?"

Rex opened the book and looked at the first page that he seen. It was a little in the middle. He looked the page over before nodding. "Okay. Here's what this page says. 'Tis a twilight night and I am awaiting my beloved's arrival. For tonight, we share the love we..." Rex stopped aburtly, his face turning red. Darien's face was starting to heat up as well. It didn't take a genius where this was going. "Damn, Slytherin. Be very graphic, why don't you?" The little Gryffindor said sarcastically. Darien laughed as he watched Rex flip through the pages back to one of the earlier pages. "Hey! There's a drawing! Whoa, that thing is ugly!"

Darien looked at him with confusion before going over to see what he was talking about. He looked at the drawing on the page before squinting his eyes. The drawing was of a gargoyle looking creature. But this didn't look like any gargoyle Darien had ever seen. It had massive bat like wings spread out on its back and had bat like features. He instantly recognized it. For he had seen it before in one of his dreams. "That's it. That's the Umbra." he whispered.

Rex looked at him with confusion. "That's the Umbra? Are you sure?"

Darien slowly nodded as he reached out to take the book.

Suddenly something flashed before his eyes, making him quickly close his eyes as pain filled his body. Rex had jumped when he watched his friend start to have some kind of fit. "Darien?!" He gasped. Darien didn't hear him though. He just clenched his teeth tightly as the pain grew even more intense. Then his eyes snapped open. But he wasn't in his room anymore.

Instead, he was in a dark chamber that looked very much like the Slytherin's Common House. There were emerald green curtains hanging everywhere. The Slytherin crest was hanging over a massive fireplace. And standing in front of it was the young Salazar Slytherin.  
There was a painful look on Slytherin's face as if something had happened. Something bad. His head was bowed and his eyes were closed. He looked like he was struggling with something. After a long time, he opened his eyes and looked into the fire.

_"Slytherin." _

Darien heard that whisper that he hated the most. He watched as Slytherin's face became a little pale as he just continued to stare into the fire. The Hogwarts Founder slowly turned around looking around the dark room. He didn't look very well at all. "No. Not tonight. Please." He whispered.

There was a fluttering sound before something dark appeared in the shadows.

_"Slytherin, you will do as I tell you. Those children have been talking behind your back. They need to be punished. Those new curses must be tested. Who better to test them out on then the children of Gryffindor?" _

Slytherin shook his head as he turned his back onto Umbra. "I won't do it, Umbra. I won't. Those are children you're talking about. Godric's students or not. I will not do it."

There was a very unsettling silence between the two.

Suddenly dark purple light surrounded him, making him gasp out. Slytherin's body went very rigid and stiff. His eyes had gone very wide. "NO! Don't make me do it, Umbra! I don't want to!" He practically shouted.

_"That's a shame, Slytherin. You will do it because I do want you to do it. You will use all three tonight. Now let's go."_ A strange chant began to fill the air though Darien didn't understand what the words meant. He was pretty sure that Slytherin didn't either.

The next thing Darien was seeing, he couldn't stand to watch it. He watched as images flashed before his eyes. Slytherin had used all three Unforgivable curses on three students. One was a Gryffindor student. Another was Hufflepuff. And the last was no doubt a Ravenclaw.

_"One curse for each enemy. The Imperious Curse. To make my love do whatever I want her to do." _Darien heard Slytherin's voice. But it wasn't just his voice that he could hear. It was Umbra's. _"The Cruciatous Curse. The curse of pain for those weak fools who are nothing but soppy and have weak consciousnesses. And finally the Avada Kedarva curse. For this curse, I will use it on my greatest enemy. Gryffindor. That is why I made those curses. For I wanted three desires. One to control my love. To make sure she was only mine. Another to torture that annoying old hag. And the third and last, to kill my enemy." _

He jerked away from Rex and the book, stumbling onto his bed. He gasped as he clutched his chest, trying to get rid of the pain. His eyes wide on the book in Rex's hands.

"Darien?!" Rex gasped as he hurried forward.

Darien flinched away from him but relaxed as he found himself. He felt his friend's hand on his shoulder. "Darien! What's wrong?" Rex asked. Darien blinked several times before looking at him. "Did you see that?" he asked. Rex looked confused as he just stared at him. "See what?" He asked. Darien shook his head. "Those visions. Did you see what Slytherin did? What I did?"

Rex looked even more confused. "What?"

Darien shook his head. "You didn't see it. What happened?"

Rex shook his own head. "Darien, you just flinched and yanked away like you just did. I didn't see anything." He said. Darien was quiet for a minute before he looked away. "You didn't see it." He repeated himself. Rex shook his head. "No. I didn't see it. What did you see? What happened?"

Darien reached up and ran his fingers through his hair. He thought for a long moment, remembering what he had just seen. "I saw Slytherin again, Rex. Umbra forced him to use the Unforgivable curses on students."

Rex stared at him. "Are you serious?"

Darien nodded. "Yeah. That's what I saw. Man, I'm so confused." he said. Rex gave a nod. "Me too. Let's go downstairs now, Darien. I'm getting hungry." he said. Darien nodded as he stood up. "Yeah, let's go." He said. The little Gryffindor hurried and tucked the journal under his pillow before they both left the room.

Everyone had finally arrived. Darien was more than excited to see that all of his parents's friends had showed up. The entire Weasley Family was over, along with their children and grandchildren. Bill and Fleur Delacour Weasley had their five children with them. Fred and his new girlfriend was over as well. Ron's wife, who happened to be Luna Lovegood, now Luna Weasley, was showing signs of pregnancy again. Darien silently joked to Rex about how Ron was trying to do what his parents did by having a lot of children since they already had five kids, going on six. Harry and Ginny were there, of course, with their son, Sirius James Potter and their one year old daughter, Lilian Potter.  
James and Peter were quite occupied with all of the kids. They weren't getting into very much trouble.  
Darien and Rex were occupied with listening to a few stories from the Aurors. They found the stories so facinating and very exciting. At the moment, Ron was sharing a story about how he and a few other Aurors had tried to track down some Death Eaters that were still on the run. That was then Darien remembered something. He remembered what Ian Whitman had said about his father the night he recieved detention from Snape. "Hey, Ron." The young Gryffindor asked.

Most of everyone's attention went to him while others found interest in eating the pies Ginny had baked. "Yeah, bud?" Ron asked as he bounced his one year old daughter, Diana, on his knee.

Darien bit his lip, wondering how he was going to ask the question but he decided to pretend that he was just interested in the names of each Death Eater. "What are the names of the Death Eaters that you were looking for?"

That seemed to take most of the adults by surprise but Ron just shrugged. "There's a few of them, Darien. Let's see. There's Armando Revoir. Uh, Boreas Freye." He looked like he was having trouble remembering the names. Then Harry nodded as he wrapped an arm around Ginny. "There's Nathaniel Flint."

"Not to mention, Alec Turner and Ethan Wallace." added Mad Eye Moody before he returned to drinking out of his flask.

Remus frowned as he looked up at the ceiling. "Wasn't Cecil Whitman on the list?"

Immediately Darien and Rex looked at one another, both thinking the same thing before they looked back at the older Lupin. Harry then nodded. "Yes, he was on the list. But he died months ago. I think there was a nasty explosion in Stockholm and he never survived the blast." He said. Darien swallowed hard before he sat up straighter. "Whitman? Isn't that...isn't that Ian Whitman's dad?"

Everyone looked at him but the Aurors shook their heads. "No. He was his older brother. Ten years older than him. It's sad to see how wicked some young people can be." Bill said, holding Fleur's hand.

Everyone just nodded. Darien looked down at the table with a very thoughtful look. He was taking in the information carefully. There had to be something else. Ian Whitman had told his friends that his father was a Death Eater. Did he actually lie to his friends, just to impress them?

"Oh, wait. Actually, Taurine Whitman is on the list." Shacklebolt spoke up.

Darien looked up with surprise, his breath caught in his throat. Was that the name of Ian Whitman's father? Remus frowned before he looked over at Darien. "Dari, why did you ask in the first place?"

His oldest son pulled face. How was he going to answer? He couldn't just say that he overheard Slytherin bullies talking about fathers being Death Eaters or could he? All Darien did was shake his head. "No reason. I was just wondering."

"Nonsense, boy. If you know something, just tell us." Moody growled.

Darien noticed how all eyes were on him and it made him shift nervously. He didn't know how he was going to explain. It would be embarrassing to tell everyone that he had detention because he had broken a very important rule at Hogwarts.

Before he could actually say anything, Harry then grabbed his glass and lift it up into the air. "Ah, forget it. Let's not worry about things like Death Eaters. We're here to celebrate Christmas, not discuss like that." Everyone all smiled and did the same. Darien was breathing a little more freely now. He just looked at Harry, who winked at him before taking a drink of his wine.

Later in the evening, the group of friends said their goodnights and they went home. Remus and Hermione were both tucking in the boys and thanking Rex for joining them for Christmas. Hermione had kissed all of them on the forehead before singing a soft lullibye, even to the Hogwarts students. She was singing the Star Light, Star Bright riddle before she smiled at all of them.  
"Goodnight, my boys. Sweet dreams and humble sleep." She wished them before she and Remus left to go to bed.

Darien laid in bed for the longest time, his eyes gazing towards the frosty windows. He was thinking about everything he had learned. He was also thinking about the journal. Now that he had it in his hands, he could find out what to do with the Umbra. And maybe he could help Salazar Slytherin finally rest in peace and go where he was suppose to go.

"Darien?"

He turned on his bed and looked over at Rex, who was staring up at the celing. There was a troubled and pained look on the small Gryffindor's face. He looked like he was remembering something terrible but he was being hesitant about saying it.

"Rex? What's wrong?" Darien whispered to his friend.

The small Gryffindor slowly shook his head. "You know what I envy the most about you?" That really surprised Darien. His friend actually envied him. About what though? So he asked why he envied him. "You have a great family, that's why. Your mother is kind and she cares about everyone. Your dad is so cool and he's always looking out for you. Even your brothers are cool, though annoying when they want to be. But that's what brothers are suppose to be." Rex said, still staring up at the ceiling.

Darien frowned. "Rex, what are you getting at?" The small boy sighed before he sat up and leaned against the bed frame. Darien just stared at the look on his friend's face. "You don't have a family, do you?" He asked after a long silence.

Rex only gave him a sideglance before slowly shaking his head. "My parents were killed a long time ago. When I was seven." He paused for a second. "It was winter, almost Christmas. I remember it all. We were going home from a Christmas party, just like this one. It was a very cold and snowy night and the snow was coming down hard. Mom had said that she thought it would have been better if we just stayed at the Lodge the party had been at but dad didn't want to. He wanted to go home to spend Christmas night.  
I was half asleep but I remembered seeing the dark shadows in the road that made my dad slam on the brakes. We thought they were deer or something. Dad didn't like killing animals so he tried to stop. The car skidded into a snow drift and we got stuck." He paused looking at Darien, who was looking pained to hear it. But he nodded for him to go on. Rex sighed as he looked away from him.  
"Dad got out to push the car out of the drift and the dark shadows came up on him. They were men in black cloaks, Darien. No doubt Death Eaters. They tortured my dad in front of my mom and me. Mom tried to stop them but they killed her. Dad managed to lock the doors of the car before trying to hurt the men for what they did. They killed him and tried to come after me. But they changed their minds. They thought I would have froze to death in the storm anyway. So they left me alone, leaving my parents dead in the snow." Rex was now sounding emotional. "I spent Christmas in my car, watching snow pile on the windows and eating what was left of the Christmas dinner from the party. It was about a week before I was found.  
Forest rangers had found my parents under the deep snow. One of them had ran over my dad's body before he found him. Then they found me, nearly frozen. It was so cold in the car and I thought I would have died. I was sent to live with my uncle and when the letter came for Hogwarts, it freaked him out. He wasn't too happy to learn that I was a wizard and I would be going away for school. But he accepted it." He shook his head before going quiet. He just stared into his lap, not saying another word.

Darien was quiet for a long time before he sat up and looked at his little friend. "Rex, I don't know what I could say to help comfort you, but my family is your family now. You can come over any time you want. I know for one thing though, your parents wouldn't want you to grieve for them. They would want you to live your life happily, making friends, going to school and never having to worry about what happened in the past. Just to let you know, I'm your friend and I will always be here for you." He said with a faint smile.

Rex looked up at him before he smiled too. "Thanks, Dari. You really are a good friend." They both smiled at one another again before they went to sleep.

* * *

Christmas Morning came quickly and the sounds of merriment was what woke Darien and Rex. Plus James and Peter started jumping on the bed, yelling happily about Christmas finally coming. The two Gryffindors went down to see that there was quite a lot of presents under the tree. Hermione and Remus were smiling together in their favorite lovechair, drinking coffee.  
Soon everyone was opening presents. Rex was surprised that he too had presents and he thanked Darien's parents for all the kindness that they were showing to him. There were even presents from Lionel and Leoni that had arrived in the night and surprisingly, presents from Sam. It surprised Darien greatly to see that she had sent him something when she said that she wouldn't. He remembered he had sent her a CD of the Wyrd Sisters and a few WonderWitch products, curtesy of Fred Weasley, who had even given him advice on what to give a girl.

When Darien opened up his presents, he found that Sam had given him a brand new copy of the Hogwarts, A History-Revised. It was the latest copy of the book and it even had the recent history of Hogwarts. From the beginning of the Hogwarts to the recent times, Darien couldn't wait to get started on reading it. It even had a small entry about Harry Potter's years at the school and even about his mother.  
Darien also recieved a large package of sweets from Leoni and a pack of collectable cards of all kinds of witches and wizards of the magical history from Lionel. Apparentlly, from the note from his German friend, each and every one of the cards were worth a lot of money.  
He had also recieved new books and quills from his parents, along with the traditional cloths. Both James and Peter had picked out a cheap gobstones set for Darien. Though it wasn't the best set, it made him smile anyway. It was always the thought that counted in Darien's eyes.  
From Sirius, Darien had recieved a handsome set of cloaks made from green, red and deep blue velvet.  
And from Harry and Ron, they had both sent him highly advanced spell books. A note came with one of the books but Darien didn't read it out loud to everyone. For it was a personal note.

_'These Spell books may help you in the future. Also when we get back to Hogwarts, I'll start teaching you those spells and charms that might be able to help you in the future.' Harry_

Darien stuffed the note into his pocket and went onto the next presents. He wasn't going to show his parents the note for a few reasons, mainly he knew that his mother wouldn't probably approve of her son learning advanced magic so quickly.  
After all, she hadn't approved of the early Divination lessons. Why would she approve of the early defense lessons with Harry?  
The only thing that did bother him was what would he find at Hogwarts when he went back to school. It was more than likely things would get a little more weirder than they already were.


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16.**

Upon returning to Hogwarts, everything seemed to be back to normal. Students were coming back with excitment and sharing with their friends, stories about their Christmas. The three Gryffindor friends, Darien, Rex and Lionel told each other about what they got for Christmas and thanked each other for what they had recieved from one another. Darien and Rex also told Lionel that they finally had Slytherin's journal. They wanted to get started on reading it but Snape then showed up while they were on their way back to the Gryffindor House to get settled back in and he told Darien and Lionel that they both still had detention. And on the very next night too. Already were the two Gryffindors annoyed with him.

"So, what does the book say?" Lionel asked as they sat down in a secluded corner.

Darien shrugged before he pulled the journal out of his book bag and they opened it up. The young werewolf pushed it towards Rex and the little Gryffindor opened it up to the front page. "Okay, let's see. Blah, blah, my name is Salazar Slytherin, I am from Lisbon, Spain. Oh, wow. He's Spanish. No wonder he writes in Latin." He went back to reading it. He flipped through a few pages before coming to one page. "Oh, here's where he first met Gryffindor." He said in a quiet voice.

Darien and Lionel nodded as they glanced at one another. "Okay. Read it. What did he first think of him?" The blonde asked.

Rex nodded as he quickly read through it, before reading it again. "Well it looks like he wasn't impressed at first. He even called Gryffindor an overgrown cat." They all sniggered. Darien nodded. "Actually he kind of does look like a lion." He added.

Rex squinted his eyes before smiling. "Okay. This is what it says. _'Godric Gryffindor is quite the fellow. Very bold and daring but he can be a little bothersome. But he did save my life and for that, I owe him a debt. Our encounter must be fate, for nothing happens without meaning.'_ Man, this is a little boring. That's all he's saying about Gryffindor. Now he's going into some kind of story about his past."

"Well, what does it say? Maybe it's something interesting." Darien said.

Rex pulled a face and shook his head. "It's not. Trust me. He's just talking about his family. It doesn't sound like he was too fond of being the son of a wizard called Seye Slytherin." He told him.

Lionel's eyes lit up a little. "Hey! I know that name! Seye Slytherin was an Ancient, one of the oldest wizards. He lived for almost 1000 years before witch hunters got a hold of him."

Darien bit his lip as he took it into thought. "Witch hunters. Muggles?" He asked looking at his friend. Lionel nodded and he then caught onto what Darien was thinking. "That must be why Slytherin doesn't like Muggles. His father was killed by them." He said. Darien nodded looking at Rex, who was glancing at more parts in the book. "Rex, what else does it say?"

The little Gryffindor then shook his head. "Hold on a sec. It's just saying that he's been spending time with Gryffindor. Looks like they were becoming quite close friends. It says that Slytherin was really starting to trust Gryffindor. He even considered him as a brother that he never had."

Darien frowned as he thought of that. "In one of my dreams, he really hated Gryffindor. He wanted to kill him. They must have really fell far if they used to think of each other as brothers." He said in a low voice.

Lionel and Rex both nodded as they looked back at the journal. Then the little Gryffindor's eyes lit up. "Oh, wow."

"What?" Both Darien and Lionel asked quickly.

Rex shook his head as he nodded to the book. "It's got a picture of a pretty lady." He then showed his two friends.

The drawing on the page was of a very beautiful woman, staring up at them with a dull stare, yet her eyes seemed to be really alive. Her black hair was piled up on her head in an elegant bun with flowers dotting in it, here and there. She was wearing a lovely gown in a dark color, which Darien immediately knew was blue. For he had seen this lady before.

It was Rowena Ravenclaw.

"I know who that is, guys. That's Rowena Ravenclaw. Slytheirn was really into her during their years of knowing each other."

Rex nodded as he fingered some of the Latin words on the page. "Sure looks that way. This is what is says about Ravenclaw." He paused for a second before nodding. "It says, _'Tis an angel I thought when I first laid eyes on her. She was the most loveliest creature I had ever seen. And her name made my heart flutter when she spake it to me. Rowena, the lovely, lovely Rowena. How is it does the dearest Rowena apprehend a heart such as mine? How is it does the lovely Rowena seem to make my heart of black stone turn into melting ice? And how my whole being becomes something else? The only poignant issue is that she is what I abhore.'_ Hey, what does those words mean? Poignant and abhore?"

Darien shook his head as he was taking in the story. "Poignant means distressing, upsetting, pretty much sad. And abhore means hate or despise." He told him.

Rex nodded. "Oh. Okay. Well that's just about what it says. He goes on saying how that Rowena Ravenclaw is the stars of the sky and the sun rays that warms the earth. He really liked her, didn't he?"

"Yeah. He did. He even told me that before. He said that he really loved her and no one could see that. Everyone thought he was just plain cold and he didn't have a heart for anyone." Darien shrugged. "You know, I really doubt that now that I'm getting to know Slytherin. Everyone has a heart. It just depends if they chose to use it or not. He did until Umbra got a hold of him." His two friends then nodded in agreement.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

All three boys looked up to see Sam walking over. Rex quickly shut the journal and scooped it into his bag so that she didn't see it. "Hey, Sam. How was your Christmas?" He asked. Sam just shrugged as she stopped near them. She was ignoring the looks that Lionel was giving her. "It was pretty fun. Some of the ghosts actually sang Christmas Carols during Christmas Eve and Peeves really decorated the place, at least what he called decorated. He tied up Flitwick and decorated him like a Christmas tree. He really did look like one when Peeves got done with him." She said with a short laugh.

Both Darien and Rex laughed with her, while Lionel rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. So what? Look, can't you see we're busy?" He asked in a huff.

Sam gave him the coldest look before she smiled at Darien and Rex. "Well, I'll leave you guys to whatever you were doing. Just to shut Lionel's fat mouth." She said then she walked away.

"Lionel, you really need to give her a break. I know she's your sister's friend, but she's trying to be friends with us too. You need to stop being mean to her." Darien said. Lionel rolled his eyes. "Hey, I already told you guys. Any friends of my sister's, is not a friend of mine." He said leaning back into his chair.

Rex pulled a face before he shook his head. "Are you going to say that if we become friends with Leoni?"

Lionel stayed quiet for a minute before he sat up straight again. "No. But..."

"So give Samara a break, all right? Because sooner or later, you're going to start liking her and you're going to want to date her. And when that happens, she's not going to want anything to do with you." Darien said with a shrug.

Lionel pulled a disgusted look. "Ugh! Darien! There's no way in hell I'm going to want to date that girl! She'll probably go all psycho babe on us and try to kill us in seven days!"  
Darien and Rex both rolled their eyes before they decided to stop reading the journal for a while and go back to do their school reading.

Later in the evening, while Darien was starting to look through the spell book Harry had given him, he was getting the feeling like someone was watching him. And that really creeped him out. Most of the other Gryffindor students had already gone to bed and some were talking in whispers about their Christmases again. But Darien could have sworn that someone was watching him. He looked around the room, trying to find out who might have been watching him. But he still didn't see any eyes on him. He eventually looked at the dark shadows in the room, shuddering a little to think that the Umbra might have been in the room, watching him. He then looked towards the window he was sitting next to and he froze.  
There was something sitting outside the window.  
He stood up quickly, dropping the book in his hands. He backed away from the window, just staring at what it was in the window. He only felt stupid when he noticed that it was just a black raven.

Darien then frowned as he stepped a little closer to see the raven closer. There was something different about it. And one question was kicking his mind in asking, Why was there a raven at Hogwarts during the winter? Didn't ravens migrate to the South for winter?

The raven just sat there, staring up at him. It didn't look menacing at all. And Darien highly doubted that it was the Umbra in a raven form or had taken control of the large black bird. He just seemed too flamboyant for ravens. He liked to possess people, didn't he?

After a minute, Darien slowly sat back down in the chair, watching the raven, which watched him back. He looked at the tiny black eyes of the raven before realizing something. The raven had blue eyes, not black. It really surprised the young Gryffindor. He had never seen a raven with blue eyes like this one.  
After another minute, he decided to be a little bold. He stood back up and opened the window by a crack. The raven just stayed where it was, watching him. It never made a move to attack him or to fly away. Darien watched it carefully before he pushed the window half way open. Still the raven didn't move. It just watched him.  
Another second passed before he reached out slowly towards the raven, waiting for it to fly away or attack his hand, which he really hoped that it would be the first one. He did NOT want to get attacked. His fingers were very close to touching the bird now before it hopped onto his hand. It did surprise him but then he relaxed when it just sat there.

Slowly, Darien brought the bird back inside, just staring down at it. The raven stared back at him.  
For almost a second, he could have sworn that the raven was smiling at him. But that was silly, wasn't it? Ravens couldn't smile. But this one sure was.  
Darien then gently touched the bird's breast, stroking it slowly. The bird didn't seem to be bothered by it at all. It just stood on his hand, looking around the room.

"Wow. You're an interesting bird, you know that?" Darien whispered to it as he sat back down in the chair.

The raven only looked back at him. The young Gryffindor then smiled back at it. He stroked its back and it still didn't seem to be bothered. It seemed quite tame and he never had seen a tame raven before.

"Hm. What's your name, huh?" Darien asked in a teasing way as he leveled his eyes with the raven's. "Is your name Ravenclaw too?" He then laughed silently as he gently touched the raven's beak. The raven didn't seem to like that though. It pecked his fingers but softly as if only to give him a warning. Darien only laughed as he stroked the raven's back again. "Sorry."

"Hey, cool bird, Lupin."

Darien looked up to see one of the older Gryffindors walking over. A few of his friends with him. He smiled as he looked back at the raven. "Yeah, it is. It was just sitting on the window sill. It didn't fly away when I opened the window." He then noticed that the raven's feathers were starting to rise.  
It looked a little aggressive that way. But it wasn't looked back at Darien. It seemed to glare up at the fourth year Gryffindor. Darien knew instantly that the raven didn't like this student. But why? Why didn't it like him?  
He looked back at the four year, taking in his very appearence. This student he remembered was Henri Harris and he was a pure blood wizard. He was also quite good with his studies and very smart. But there seemed to be something different about him. His eyes, they were duller than they used to be.

Darien then realized why the raven didn't like him.

He stood up quickly, backing away with wide eyes. The other students just stared with confusion, wondering why he was looking afraid. But Henri Harris only smirked as he watched Darien carefully. "What's wrong, Darien? I'm not going to bite you." He said, his voice thick with the Umbra's. The other students backed away as Darien did. They were confused of what was going on but they knew something was wrong. The raven, however, began to caw and flap its wings at Harris. It was giving him a very threatening look. The Umbra inside Harris only laughed cruelly as he watched it. "What is your bird going to do, Lupin? Peck me to death?"

That was exactly what the bird had in mind. Because as soon as he said that, it flew at him and began hitting him with its wings and pecking on his head.

Umbra Harris cried out in pain as he threw his arms up above his head to protect himself. "Ah! Get this stupid thing away from me!" He yelled.

Darien ignored him as he quickly swooped down and snatched his wand from his bag. He quickly aimed it at the possessed fourth year.

As if the raven sensed the wand out, it quickly flew high in the air and out of range. Umbra Harris glared after it while touching the cuts in his face before looking at the wand in Darien's hand. He then smirked coldly. "Oh, good move, Darien. Have your bird distract me while you get your wand out. But haven't you forgotten something?" He then began to glow purple like he had before. Darien gasped in pain as the familiar sting struck his body.

"Hold it, you!" someone snapped.

The light around Umbra Harris died as he jerked around to see another wand stuck right under his nose. He had to step back so it didn't poke him. It was Lionel and Rex. They both must have heard the squabble from the dorms and came running.

"Oh. How quaint. Your friends come to the rescue again." The Umbra tsked. He turned back around to face Darien, who once again had his wand on him. "So what now, Lupin? You have me surrounded, so what are you going to do with me? You going to hand me over to the Aurors? Ha! Don't make me laugh." He snorted.

Darien narrowed his eyes on the possessed student. "Umbra, what do you want?! Why don't you just go away when no one wants you around?"

Umbra Harris smirked as he glanced back at the other two wands then back at Darien. "Haven't I told you before? I like possessing people. Especially special cases like you. It's so much fun when I can cause so much chaos." He said with amusement. Lionel snorted. "Is that all you want to do? Possess Darien so he can do whatever you want? Yeah right! That's not going to happen, dude! Do you know how many people is on your case right now?" He asked darkly.

"Lionel, don't talk to him." Darien warned him.

Lionel only glanced at him but then nodded as he jabbed his wand closer to Umbra Harris, who chuckled darkly as he looked back at Darien. "Why don't you enlighten me?"

Suddenly something hot burned in Darien's mind. He cried out in pain as he grabbed his head. He could see his own memories now flashing before his eyes. He remembered what Professor Caligo had said about this sort of thing. The Umbra was using Occlumency on him to see what Lionel was talking about. Darien tried very hard to shut out his mind now, to stop the Umbra from seeing everything. There was very important things that he couldn't let it see. The journal for one and what he was learning. That seemed to be a mistake on thinking about because immediately the memory of the journal popped up.

But not before the raven dove down and stabbed its beak into Umbra Harris's shoulder.

"Argh!" The possessed student screamed out in pain and broke concentration with Darien's memories. He even staggered back, waving at the bird to get it away from him. Darien stood up straight, rubbing his temple and watched the raven attack the possessed student.

Just then the portrait hole slammed open and several Aurors and teachers came in, just as the black cloud shot out of Harris and tried to flee from the attacking raven, which had stopped attacking Harris and started attacking the black cloud. The Aurors and teachers immediately had their wands out and started aiming at the cloud but before they could anything, it slammed into a dark corner. It was gone within minutes. The raven began to circle the room, as if making sure that it was definitely gone before it swooped down and landed right on Darien's shoulder.

Everyone in the room was looking very alert or surprised at what they all just saw. But Remus rushed over to his son, grabbing him by arm and began looking him over for any injuries.

"Darien! Are you all right?!" He asked in a panic.

Darien was just staring at the black bird on his shoulder with interest before he slowly nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine. It didn't hurt me this time." He said. Remus then looked at the raven sitting on Darien's shoulder. "Where did this come from?"

Darien looked up at his father then back at the raven. "I don't know where she came from. But she saved me from Umbra. She warned me that Umbra was in Henri Harris." he said looking over at the fallen student, who was now rubbing his head and wincing at the cuts in his face. Other than the injuries the raven gave him, he looked okay. It was more than likely that the Umbra hadn't possessed Harris for very long. Not like it had done to Paul.

After making sure Harris was okay, Dumbledore moved over to where Darien was, looking at the bird with interest. "My, what an extraordinary raven you have there, Darien." He said, looking at it with curious eyes.

Darien smiled as he looked back at the raven on his shoulder, which was looking around, almost searching for another threat. It didn't seem bothered with so many people staring at it. He then looked up at his dad with a bigger smile. "Dad, can I keep her?"

Everyone only smiled or laughed while Remus shook his head with a big smile. "After what just happened, yes, Darien. You can keep it."

* * *

The next day was quite interesting for Darien. Everywhere he went, the raven seemed to follow. Other students were so interested in looking at the bird that some of the teachers got annoyed with them paying attention to the bird and not to them.

What was even more interesting was when Slytherin finally showed up during lunch while Darien was with Lionel and Rex in the library. He just dematerialized in thin air, looked around before he frowned towards the raven sitting on the back of Darien's chair. Darien only glanced up at the ghost before going back to writing his essay. "Hey, Slytherin. Have a nice Christmas?"

Lionel and Rex looked around before shrugging and going back to what they were doing. The ghost only stared at the raven before shaking his head. "I hope you're not taunting me, Lupin. Christmas was never one of my favorites."

The raven cawed loudly, almost sounding like it was snorting.

Several other students looked over and Madam Pince gave Darien a look from her chair. Darien felt his face flushing before he reached up and gently stroked the raven's breast. "Shh. This is a library. You're not suppose to be so loud." He whispered to it before he looked up at Slytherin, who was eyeing the bird with suspicion. "Oh. This is Rowena. She's kind of my new pet raven." Darien said.

Lionel and Rex only smiled and shook their heads. "So you finally named her, huh?" The little Gryffindor asked. Darien shrugged. "Well, I went through some names with her but she didn't seem to like any of them. She liked Rowena though."

Slytherin was still eyeing the bird. "Where did she come from?" He asked finally.

Darien looked up at him before shrugging. "I don't know. She was sitting by the window last night. Umbra showed up last night and she chased it off." he said. The raven opened its bill, as if it was going to caw again but it didn't.

Slytherin just watched her before his lips curved up a little. "Ravens are interesting birds, though they can be troublesome. Very intelligent." He said before he looked at Darien. "It seems to me that this raven knew that you needed protection and that's why it came to you. Keep that bird close, Lupin. It may become your best friend."

Darien only smiled before he stroked the raven's back again. "Thanks, Slytherin. She's awesome. You won't believe on how many people that has asked me if I've had her for years now." He said. Slytherin just folded his as he just continued to look at the bird. "You could fool me with her, boy. Ravens are very hard to tame. Believe me when I say this."

"Was Rowena like that too?" Darien did not know what had made him ask that question. It surprised himself that the question even escaped his mouth. Lionel and Rex both even looked up at him, almost questioningly. Slytherin was just staring at him.

After a long moment, he nodded. "Yes, boy. She was. I would suppose that was why she chose the raven as her house's mascot. It surprises me to see that you have a raven as a pet and you're naming her Rowena."

Darien only shrugged as he went back to his essay. It wasn't long before someone approached them. The three students looked up to see Professor Caligo. He was smiling as he walked over. "Good afternoon, boys." He said. Darien heard Rowena make a soft noise in her throat but she didn't caw. He only glanced at her to see that some of her feathers were sticking up but she looked quite relaxed. Slytherin on the other hand was eyeing the teacher with distaste.

"Good afternoon, Professor." Lionel said. Rex only glanced over at Darien, who looked back. He was looking to see what his friend's reaction was.

"Darien, I would like a quick word with you, if you can spare the time." Professor Caligo said.

Darien glanced back at his friends then to Slytherin, who all were watching him. Then he nodded as he pushed his chair out. "All right, Professor." He said as he did. He took two steps towards the professor when Rowena immediately flew over and landed on his shoulder. He glanced at her but didn't say anything. Professor Caligo on chuckled. "I suppose your new friend likes to go where you go, hm?"

Darien shrugged. "Well, ever since last night's attack, she goes everywhere with me. I think she just wants to make sure that I stay safe."

Professor Caligo nodded as he lead Darien towards the side. He didn't say anything until they were well out of earshot from everyone else. "I've been a little concerned about you, Darien. You haven't been coming to the lessons when your suppose to."

Darien frowned as he shifted his weight. "It's Professor Snape, sir. Ever since he caught me trying to go last time, he's been watching the Gryffindor House at night. I can't get away because of him." He said. Professor Caligo only frowned as he listened but then he nodded. "I see. Well, if you can't come anymore, then we best drop the lessons." He said. Darien looked hesitant. "But, Professor. If these lessons would help me, then surely you can try to explain to Snape on what we're doing."

"I already told you, Darien. No one would approve of these lessons. You are a first year student, learning advanced lessons of Divination. It would probably be best." Professor Caligo said.

Darien sighed as he lowered his head. "Professor, I really do want to continue the lessons."

Professor Caligo was quiet for a moment then he smiled. "My, Darien. You really do astound me, do you know that? You are such a devoted student. All right. We'll continue the lessons. But you need to try a little harder to get away for the lessons. Can you come tonight?" He asked. Darien immediately frowned before shaking his head. "I have detention, sir. I got caught trying to sneak off for the last lesson."

Again the Professor frowned. He looked away, with a scowl for a second before he smiled towards Darien again. "All right. I understand. Then tomorrow night. My inner eye tells me that Severus will not be watching the Gryffindor tower. He will be too busy to do so." He told Darien.

Darien nodded as he stood up taller, feeling so much better. "All right, Professor. I'll come tomorrow night." He promised. Professor Caligo nodded before he turned and walked away. Darien watched him go before he walked back to where Lionel and Rex was waiting. Along with a cross looking Slytherin. He was scowling at the Gryffindor student, as if he had done something that he didn't approve of.

"So what was that all about?" Lionel asked.

Darien just shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It's something between me and him."

"Darien, just tell him. He's your friend too." Rex said folding his arms. Lionel looked suspiciously between his two friends. "All right. What's going on?" He asked. Darien was quiet for a second before he glanced up at Slytherin, who was still scowling. "What are you so angry about?" He asked. Lionel and Rex only glanced up to where Darien was looking, but of course, they couldn't see Slytherin. "It's the fact that your taking lessons from him when you shouldn't be. You shouldn't trust him." He grumbled.

Darien just stared up at him with surprise. "Did you listen to us talking?" He asked in a very accusing way. He was not happy that Slytherin had over heard what he and Professor Caligo had been talking about.

"Why does it matter, boy?! The point is, your parents didn't want you to take lessons from him! They don't trust him and neither do I!" The grumpy ghost growled. Darien glared up at the ghost. "Man, I can't ever have a private conversation without someone listening in, can I?!"

"Darien, what's going on?" Lionel asked.

Darien rolled his eyes as he looked over at him. "I'm not suppose to tell you, Lionel. I promised the Professor that I wouldn't. But Rex knows because he was with me talking to Draco." He glanced around before lowering his voice. "I'm taking Divination lessons from Professor Caligo. But you can't tell anyone about it, all right?"

Lionel's eyes squinted. "Divination lessons? Why?"

Again, Darien shook his head. "It's suppose to help me fight off the Umbra. Professor Caligo told me that I need an open mind to keep it from possessing me. He's showing me how to use a different level of Occlumency. He called it Mindwalking but it doesn't really have a real name." He told his friends.

"NO! Do not have an open mind!" Slytherin barked.

Darien jumped a little at the tone of the ghost's voice. Even the raven jumped. She flapped her wings several times as she made a cackling sound and she seemed to glare up in the direction of Slytherin. Darien was starting to wonder if she could see Slytherin too. "What! Why are you yelling at me?" He just asked. Lionel and Rex just gave a confusing look in the area where Slytherin was hovering.

"Boy! That is not what you should do! To have an open mind is like inviting Umbra inside your head! And if he gets inside of your head, he will have you right where he wants you!" Slytherin snapped.

Darien frowned at him. "But that's not what..."

"Forget what Caligo told you, Lupin! He's a dumb teacher who probably is under Umbra's spell! Do not take anymore lessons from that Divination teacher! If you truely want to know more about Divination, then let me teach you! But not him!"

Darien just stared at him before he slammed his book closed. "Stop yelling at me! Why don't you trust Professor Caligo?" He asked. Slytherin just shook his head. "I don't have to give you a reason, boy! Just trust me!"

"How can I trust you if you don't tell me?!" Darien snapped back.

Because he had rose his voice, several people looked over at him and Madam Pince was now glaring at the three boys. She looked quite fierce the way she was looking at them. "Keep your voices down or you will no longer be allowed in the library!" She warned.

Lionel quickly dove into the arguement between Darien and Slytherin to cover it up. "I'm sorry, Darien. I didn't mean to say it like that." He lied.

Darien looked at him before he glanced around and then he blew out a sigh. "It's okay, Lionel. I'm sorry for yelling at you." He said playing the game. Then he glared up at Slytherin was glaring back. "Look, Slytherin. It's just, he is a Divination teacher and he knows about dreams. He's been telling me what my dreams are about, okay? So stop yelling at me." He said in a quieter tone.

Slytherin just continued to glare at him. "Boy, if you want to know about dreams, just ask me. It's my past that you're seeing. You have to trust me on some of these things. I know I am Salazar Slytherin and I have a terrible past that deals with the Dark Arts. But I am a genius at Divination. I am one of the Founders of Hogwarts, is that clear? I don't know why Caligo is so interested in your dreams and frankly, I don't care. I know he's hiding something from you and everyone else in this castle. I have been trying to watch him for quite some time. But trying to do that is very hard. I can't go into the Divination tower. There's some kind of magic barrier around it that is for ghosts."

Darien then frowned as he thought of something. He tilted his head, staring up at Slytherin with interest. "Slytherin, can Professor Caligo see you? I remember he was looking at you when we first talked to one another in the Infirmary months ago. And I thought he was looking at you just now."

There was a very long silence as Slytherin looked away. It looked like he was pondering over the idea, himself. It was like he was asking himself that very same question. After a minute, he looked back at Darien. "I don't know if he can see me. He's never spoken to me since he came to Hogwarts. And I'm pretty sure he has been looking in my direction a few times." He then shook his head. "It could be that he doesn't actually see me, that he just senses my aura. People all have strange auras in the Divination area. Even ghosts. It's possible that he's just sensing my presense. But still, I'm not sure."

Darien slowly nodded as he just looked down at his bag. After a second, he reached into it and pulled out Slytherin's journal. He immediately saw interest in the ghost's dull eyes as soon as he saw the book. "My journal. So you did get a hold of it." The ghost said.

"So it is your journal. That's what we thought. Rex is the only one out of us that can read Latin but maybe you can help us out in a few areas. Like what could help us in defeating Umbra and stuff like that." Darien said, opening the book. Lionel and Rex both scooted over to get a good look at the pages too. Slytherin also moved closer before he waved his hand.

Immediately the pages began to flip one by one at a very high speed. Darien had moved his hands back to keep the pages from cutting his hands but he watched carefully as the pages flipped open.

Then the book stopped on the picture of Umbra. Lionel actually shuddered when he saw it. "That's Umbra?" He asked. Darien nodded but he wasn't the only one. Slytherin also nodded. "That's him. I drew his picture a long time ago." He said. Darien studied the bat like face of the demon before he looked up at Slytherin. "How could you trust something like that? Evil is written all over his face." He said.

Slytherin only glanced at him before he scowled back at the picture. "The same reason why dark wizards love the Dark Arts. Power. He offered to give me power, intelligence of what the others were saying behind my back and even offered to protect me against my enemies. How was I suppose to know that he was going to use me like he did?"

Darien faintly smiled up at him. "I thought you were the master of Divination. Couldn't you see that with Inner eye?"

Slytherin gave him a cool look for that remark. "Don't be smart with me, boy. The Umbra is a demon of Darkness. He's been around for a very long time. He also knows the secrets of Divination. He actually taught me about it. So what I know, he knows."

"So, if he knows everything that you do, then it's going to be impossible to defeat him." Darien said with gloom.

Lionel bit his lip. He was adding things together while listening to Darien talk to empty air. "Why don't we try something that he might not know?" He asked. Darien looked at him. "I don't know. What doesn't he know about?" He asked. Slytherin's eyebrows then shot up to his hairline. "He doesn't know anything about the power of light. He's afraid of it. From what I remember, which isn't much, light burns his skin and eyes." He told them.

That seemed to turn a lightbulb on in Darien's head. "He's afraid of light? That's why he keeps running away when I use the Lumos spell." He said. Slytherin nodded. "Exactly."

Rex's own eyes then lit up. "Hey! If Umbra doesn't like light, maybe we can use that against him!"

Darien, Lionel and Slytherin looked at the little Gryffindor. "How can we do that? We can't just keep using Lumos all the time. It only works for a short time." The young werewolf asked. Rex shrugged. "Maybe a spell in that book Harry gave you would help." He suggested.

"Well, that's the best idea so far." Lionel said with a shrug. Darien shook his head. "Not really. I'm having trouble reading that book. All of the spells in it are really difficult. It's more than likely it'll take a long time to even get one spell. We need something bigger." He then looked up at Slytherin. "Hey! I know Draco still has a Hand of Glory. It's still at his old mansion. Would that work?"

Slytherin shook his head. "Hands of Glory are Dark Magic items. Umbra might be able to turn it against you if you used one. You need something else." He told him.

Darien sighed as he sunk into his chair. Lionel and Rex seemed to guess that his idea wouldn't work. But then Rex sat up straighter in his chair. "Hey! What about a Lightstone!"

Darien and Lionel looked at him with confusion. "A what?" They both asked.

Rex looked very excited about it. He grinned at his two friends. "I can't believe you haven't heard of them! I've read about them in a book once! Lightstones are like Seer stones. Only they glow with brilliant white light. And they can last for hundreds of years! If we can manage to find one, we can drill a hole in it and one of us could wear it around our neck. And since Umbra is actually after Darien, he can wear it. It should keep Umbra away from him." He said excitedly.

Darien really did like the idea. But there was only one problem. "I've never heard of these stones. Where would we find a Lightstone? And exactly how does it work?"

Now Slytherin was grinning. "Lightstones are normal white rocks, boy. They glow brilliantly when the darkness first touches them. Almost millions of years ago, during the Dark Ages, the great wizard Merlin used Lightstones. He was the one that created them. All he did was take a white stone and place a spell on it. Because of his great power, his spell affected all white stones much like it. From the very first Lightstone, others followed with it. The stone he used was actually a boulder the size of a Mountain troll. Eventually the boulder broke up in pieces after landing on the head of a stone golem several milleniums ago."

Darien frowned up at him. "Yeah, but how are we going to find any white stones? I've never seen a white stone on the beach of the lake or anything?"

"That's because they are only in one place, Lupin. The beach you've been to is not the right area. You must go into the Dark Forest, a few miles away from Hogwarts to find them. I know the area. I could take you there. But it's very risky." Slytherin said.

Darien bit his lip before he nodded. "We have to go in the Dark Forest then. During the day though. It's not as dangerous." His friends then nodded in agreement.


	18. Chapter 17

**Author's Note: Oh good. There is still people reading this story! Thank you for your reviews everyone. I appreciate it and I'm glad you're enjoying this story.**

**Now in this chapter, something really, really big happens! It deals with the detention that Darien and Lionel has to serve with Snape. Read on!**

**

* * *

****Chapter 17.**

During their Potions class, Darien could see that Snape was very annoyed that raven had followed him into the dungeons. She was just sitting on a shelf, staying quiet and looking around. She cawed a few times but very softly so it didn't distract any of the students. Darien watched as Snape would pace through the aisles before glaring towards the bird when she flapped her wings. He only hoped that Snape wouldn't doct points for him bringing the raven to class.

As soon as class let out, Darien was being very quick in putting his things away. He didn't want to hear anything Snape might have to say to him. But he wasn't fast enough.

"Lupin! Boyd"

The two 1st year Gryffindors groaned before they looked up at the sneering Potions Master. Darien stood up to face him. "Yes, Professor?" He asked, glancing at Lionel.

"Just a reminder to you both. You have detention with me tonight. Come to the Main Hall during lunch. You will serve detention then." Snape said in a low hissy tone. Lionel decided to open his mouth when he knew that he shouldn't have. "What about dinner? We can't skip that." He argued.

Snape narrowed his eyes before he raised an eyebrow at him. "Then eat quickly." He drawled the last word a little longer than he should have before he turned and went back to his desk. Darien and Lionel looked at one another before looking at Rex, who was giving them both a sympathedic look. They all shook their heads and started towards the door. The raven flew down from the shelf and landed on Darien's shoulder as he started out.

"Oh, and Lupin!"

Darien stopped when he heard Snape call after him. He just turned half way to look at his Professor. "Leave the bird in your House from now on. Pets aren't even allowed in class. Next time you bring that raven, I will make sure to use its talons and some of its feathers in some potions. Do I make myself clear?" Snape sneered.

Darien glanced at Rowena, who seemed to understand what Snape had just said because her feathers were ruffled again and she was looking quite agressive. "Yes, sir." He had to say before he hurried away with his friends.

"Man! He is so mean! Rowena didn't do anything during the class! What's he afraid she'll do? Molt in some cauldrons?! Yeah right!" Lionel growled as they went down the hall. Darien shook his head as he stroked Rowena's breast again. "He was just annoyed with me letting her come with us. But I can't make her stay anywhere. She likes being with me. I think it's because of Umbra." He said. Rex nodded as he tightened his grip on his bag. "It doesn't really matter, does it? All the other teachers don't seem to mind her. Even McGonagall didn't say anything when she came with you. I thought I saw her smile when she looked at us."

"I thought that was a grimace." Lionel said.

Rex shrugged. "I think she tried to cover it up with a grimace. The point is, everyone likes Rowena."

Darien nodded. "I think it's because of her eyes. No one's ever seen a raven with blue eyes before. I heard my dad and Professor Dumbledore talking about it this morning. Normal ravens don't have blue eyes." He said. Lionel just stared at the raven, who was looking back at him. "What kind of raven is she anyway? She looks like a common raven to me."

Darien shook his head. "I don't know. There aren't very many types of ravens are there?"

"No. There's not."

The three boys turned to see Sam and Leoni walking over. And for once, Lionel kept his mouth shut. He was just acting as if he never saw the girls there. Sam and Leoni stepped up to them, both staring at Rowena. "Wow, Darien. Your raven is really pretty. I've never seen a raven like her." Leoni said as she studied the raven, who only looked at her before turning her head sharply around as if looking for something else to look at.

Darien only smiled as he lightly scratched Rowena's back. "Thanks, Leoni."

Sam tilted her head as she stepped closer and looked at the raven. She was quiet for a long time before she looked at Darien. "You know, there is a story about ravens though. It's said that ravens are the birds of death. They carry the souls of someone who died to the next life. When you see a raven hanging around, it's a warning that you're going to die." She told him.

Now, Lionel was giving her a look. "Sam! Don't tell him that! You're going to freak him out!" He yelled. Sam gave him a dark look. "It's just a story, Lionel! It's not true!" She yelled back.

Darien was just looking at the two with wide eyes. He was a little disturbed to hear that little story about ravens but he knew it couldn't have been true. His raven had saved his life, not helped try to end it. The raven even seemed to understand what Sam just said because her feathers were ruffled again and she looked a little offended.

"How do we know that?! This is the magical world, remember?! Besides, you're an expert on death, aren't you?! I bet someday you really will be the girl who kills people in...!" Lionel snapped.

**Wham!**

Lionel doubled over once Sam slugged him in the chest. He went down to his knees this time, gasping for air. "How dare you?! You are such an ass, Lionel! I can not believe you!" She yelled. She turned and stormed away. Leoni glared down at her twin before she followed her friend.

Darien shook his head before he bent down and helped Lionel stand up again. "Man, Lionel. You really are wishing for a death wish, aren't you?" He asked. Lionel groaned as he rubbed his chest. "Man, why does she keep hitting me that hard?" He asked in a painful tone. Both of his friends gave him a look for it. "You don't see why? Lionel, for crying out loud. You keep insulting Sam really bad. You really need to stop it. For your health and her's. With you being mean like that to her, she's going to do a lot worst." Rex said.

"Really? What can she do that's worst than bruised ribs?" Lionel growled.

"She's a witch, remember? She's learning magic, Lionel. Just use your imagination of what she can do." Darien pointed out.

Lione's eyes grew wide as he just thought about it, then he pulled a face. "Damn. I'm dead where I stand." He said. Darien and Rex both laughed and they went back to the Gryffindor House.

* * *

Later that night, Darien and Lionel were walking with Rex down to the Great Hall. They had made sure that Dobby had brought them something to eat before they had to go. They weren't too thrilled about having a detention with Snape but they knew that they had to do it. So they didn't say anything about it. The only problem about it, was Rowena had tried to follow Darien. But he kept trying to put her back in his room.  
After fighting with her, he decided to explain to her why she couldn't go with him. The raven just stared at him, looking a little forlorn. 

"I'm sorry, Rowena. But you can't go with me this time. Snape is annoyed with you because you came to class today." He told her. He felt a little dumb that he had to explain this to a bird but it seemed to be working. Because she just sat there, watching him as he turned and walked out of the room. He paused to look back at her to see what she might do and she was still there. It seemed like she had caught onto what he was trying to say. So he left with Lionel and Rex.

The three Gryffindors finally reached the Great Hall where they found Snape arguing with Remus and Sirius. The two looked very annoyed with the Potions Master.

"Severus! You can't be serious! You can't take the boys out there! It's dangerous!" Sirius argued.

Snape just sniffed in Sirius's direction. "What I do is none of your business, Black. You are a housekeeper and I'm a Potions Professor. I am the one who is taking the boys for their Detention. They are lucky enough all I want to do is pick herbs for Potions. We are not even going far from Hogwarts. There are Aurors roaming around on the grounds and I am a Teacher. They'll be perfectly safe with me."

Sirius just glared at him. "Yeah, right! You're probably going to feed them to some large venus fly trap or something!" He turned to Remus, who was rubbing his temples. "Remus! You can't possibly let him do this! Darien is your son!"

"Sirius, please stop yelling. It's not really helping my headache." Remus said as he dropped his hands. He then shook his head. "Severus, I know Darien is doing detention with you and Albus has reluctantly agreed with this detention, but he is my son and I'm just concerned about him. I'm sure he'll be safe with you, along with the Aurors. But you can't blame me for worrying anyway."

It was then Snape noticed the young Gryffindors. He straightened, lifting his chin high and narrowed his eyes on the boys. Both Remus and Sirius turned around before they both frowned. It was clear that they weren't happy at the second. Darien glanced at his friends as they approached the three adults. Lionel had a very forlorn look on his face. It was clear that he didn't want to do this at all. But what choice did he have?

"Hey, D. You feeling all right?" Sirius asked as he wrapped his arm around Darien's shoulders. Darien shrugged. "Could be better. But I'm all right." He told him.

Remus blew out a sigh before he looked at Rex. "Rex, why don't you run along to dinner?" He told him. Rex nodded as he looked at Darien. "See you later, Darien, Lionel. Have fun." he said in a sarcastic way. Darien and Lionel both faintly smiled and shook their heads. They waved at Rex as he walked away towards the Great Hall. Then he looked at his father, who gave him a faint smile.

"Well, now that you've finally arrived, we can get started." Snape said almost too coldly.

Sirius gave the Potions Master a look but said nothing. Darien looked to his father, almost asking what was in store for him and Lionel but Remus only shook his head. "Severus, are you sure it wouldn't be better..."

"Lupin, for the last time. It's already been arranged. As for the switch, you would only go easy on your son. He's in detention because he broke a rule and he needs to be disiplined. Now if you would excuse us, we need to go get those herbs. Unless you want the boys to be up all night doing it." Snape said coolly. Remus shook his head before looking at Sirius. "All right. Sirius, you best escort them out there, like Albus had said." He then looked at Darien, giving him a faint smile and then he walked away. Darien and Lionel watched him go before looking at Snape, who gave them a cool look. "Well, let's be on our way." He said. Sirius made a face at him before he conjured up a lanturn and lead the three outside.

The four of them went out towards the Greenhouses, where a few Aurors were patrolling. Darien caught sight of Harry among them but he didn't even look towards him as he kept his eyes off towards the Dark Forest. The two Gryffindores followed their professor into the Greenhouse before Snape turned to them. "Now then," He spoke up. "The reason why we are here is to gather herbs for future potions. I will instruct you what plants to pick from."

Both Darien and Lionel only nodded while Sirius faked a yawn. "Yeah, Yeah. Now I'll be back in an hour, Snivally, for the boys. Don't be too mean to them or I'll get you good for it." He left the Greenhouse before Snape could retort.

Darien and Lionel laughed silently before they noticed Snape giving them a look. They immediately shut up and just stood there.

Finally after a moment, they began picking the herbs that Snape wanted them to pick. When they had first heard that they were just going to get herbs, they thought it was going to be easy. But unfortunately, it wasn't.  
Some of the plants that they had to pick from had sharp thorns and some really stank bad. Both Darien and Lionel were really wishing that they could have clothspins to put on their noses to keep the smell out. Snape wasn't bothered by it at all. He just collected the herbs that weren't stinky or sharp. It really made Lionel want to throw some of the stinky herbs at him.

As they worked, they were allowed to talk only in whispers. Snape didn't glare at them or anything as the two Gryffindors talked. And a fair few times, an Auror would stop by in the plant houses to check on them. Darien and Lionel were also talking about how they were going to get a hold of some Lightstones. They knew that going into the Dark Forest was very dangerous but they knew that they would need them. Not to mention they needed a plan to make sure that no one would catch them and if they did, they needed a reason to get theirselves out of trouble. So far, none of them could think of an excuse.

Finally the hour was up. Sirius had come back to get the boys, who were both very happy to see him. They really wanted to go to bed right about now. Snape only sneered before allowing them to go. It was clear that he had wanted to hold them a little longer.

As they walked back, Darien caught a glimpse of Slytherin walking along one of the high walls. He was apparently just watching over Darien, to make sure that nothing was going to go wrong. And he wasn't alone. Darien could also see Rowena flapping her wings now and then close to where he was hovering.

"Hey, Dare. What are you looking at?" Sirius asked as soon as he noticed that Darien was looking elsewhere.

Darien glanced up at his 'Uncle' before shrugging. "Nothing. Slytherin's up there walking along the wall. And so's Rowena." He said. Sirius smiled as he rose an eyebrow at the 11 year old. "Rowena? Is that what you named that bird?" he asked. Darien nodded. "It just seemed right, Sirius. I couldn't think of a better name to give her." He said. Sirius only nodded before they slowed their pace. They all waved at Harry and Ron when they saw them. The two Aurors only waved back.

Sirius was now leading the boys across the courtyard, joking with the two and laughing at a few jokes that they shared.

It was only when it started to get very cold did they stop. They all could feel it. There was something wrong. Sirius immediately pulled out his wand and grabbed Darien's shoulder. He pulled him behind him and slowly looked around. "Boys, if anything happens, I want you to run for the doors. Get inside as fast as you can, all right?" He told them quietly.

Darien and Lionel both nodded as they clutched their own wands. They both hovered close to one another while keeping their eyes peeled. Still nothing happened and they slowly relaxed, even though the errie feeling was still lingering in the air. "I think it's safe now." Sirius said as he took a few steps towards the doors.

"Boy! Watch out!" Darien heard Slytherin yell out.

Darien jumped and spun around. Only to see something big and black dive at him. Even Lionel jumped when Darien did. "AHH!" They both yelled out as they dove to the ground.

Sirius had spun around aiming his wand at whatever it was. But before he could get a shot off the big black thing, the creature grabbed the front of his shirt and threw him off to the side. He hit the stone fountain hard, only crying out in pain. Darien and Lionel both looked up with wide eyes at what was attacking them. It was to their horror did they see a Dementor. But Darien knew that this was no ordinary Dementor. It was the Dementor that had attacked him once before. The one that had Draco Malfoy's soul.

Lionel grabbed Darien's arm and pulled him to his feet. They both just stared up at the Dementor with horror as it just hovered right in front of them. It's arms were waving around and it was sucking the air towards it.

"Dar-Darien, what do we d-do?" Lionel asked nervously.

Darien shuddered he stared up at the frightening creature. "Uh...m-maybe we should run." He whispered. Lionel nodded as he backed away. "Good idea!" And they both spun around and bolted back the way they came. They knew that if they went back to the Aurors, they would be safe.

Unfortunately the Dementor didn't want them to go just yet. It gave chase, letting out the air sucking screaming sounds it usually made. Darien and Lionel didn't even dare to look over their shoulders to see how close it was. But they soon found out because Darien felt something grab his shoulder, yanking him backward. "Ahhhh!" He cried out in fear.

Lionel immediately halted in his footsteps and jerked around. "Darien!" He yelled before aiming his wand.

Darien turned around to see the Dementor holding onto his shoulder with a tight grip and it was starting to lower its head towards him. He tried his best to pull free but it was very hard. The Dementor was a lot stronger than he thought it might be.

"Darien!" He heard several voices yell. But he didn't look to see who owned those voices.

Suddenly there was a loud snarl and something hit the two of them. Darien went flying to the ground as the Dementor quickly backed away from what had attacked it. The young Gryffindor cried out in pain as he landed on his arm but he looked to see what had saved him. And it was not what he wanted to see.

The Dementor and a very large bat like creature was facing one another. It was no doubt that the Umbra had just showed up to protect what it wanted to terrorize itself.

"Back off! The boy is mine!" The demon snarled at the ghost like creature.

Darien felt someone grab his shoulder and he looked up to see Lionel trying to pull him to his feet. His eyes were very wide and his face had gone deathly pale. "Is...is that the..." He tried to say. But he didn't need to finish because Darien knew what he was trying to say. "Y-yeah! That's him all right!"

The black demon and the Dementor seemed to be snarling at one another as it circled high above the boys. They didn't even notice the Aurors running over. The Aurors, however, halted in their footsteps as they looked up at the creatures with wide eyes. "Oh my god." Harry said as he just stared. None of the aurors did anything to interupt the fight that might just break out.

Darien finally found himself and stood up. "Lionel! We can't let the Umbra destroy the Dementor!" He said quickly.

Lionel gave him a look when he said that. "What?! Darien, that thing just tried to kill you!"

Darien shook his head. "I know but the Umbra is worst than the Dementor! Besides, it has Draco Malfoy's soul! We have to free his soul or he doesn't have a chance!" He said. Lionel pulled a face but then he nodded. "Okay, okay! But how in the hell do we free a soul from a Dementor?!"

The other 11 year old shook his head. "I don't know! But we better do something quick or the Umbra might rip the Dementor apart and destroy our chance!" He then looked over to see Harry and the other Aurors. An idea flashed in his mind. He knew how to distract the Umbra from destroying the Dementor. "Harry!"

Harry immediately looked over at him with wide eyes. "Darien?! What are you still doing out here?! Get inside!" He yelled.

Darien just shook his head as he pointed at the demon that was starting to charge at the Dementor. "That's it! That's the Umbra!" He yelled. He watched as Harry's eyes flashed and he looked back at the darkness demon. He quickly rose his wand and aimed. "Use a light spell, Harry! It hurts the Umbra!" Darien quickly called.

The black haired wizard only nodded as he flicked his wand.

Brilliant white light shot out of the tip of Harry's wand and shot at the demon, who immediately roared in pain and flew upward. As soon as it was out of the light's way, it spun around and snarled towards the group of Aurors. Immediately wands were raised and light spells were starting to be thrown towards the Umbra. The demon snarled again and began to fly higher, zooming left and right to avoid the spells.

Darien and Lionel were now looking back at the Dementor, which had turned and started to flee. "No! It's getting away!" The young werewolf yelled with helplessness.

It was at that exact moment, Darien saw the raven zoom right past the Dementor and face it. It was cawing very loudly and flapping its wings at the Dementor's hood. It was doing quite the job in distracting it. The Dementor seemed confused of what this bird was trying to do. Eventually it was starting to become annoyed that the bird was blocking its escape and started swiping at it. Luckily Rowena moved and began dive at the dark creature. Darien smiled with satisfaction. "Okay! Think fast, Lionel! What should we use to extract Draco's soul?!" He asked. Lionel gave him a look. "How the hell should I know?"

"Use the Esuna Mithra, Lupin."

Darien quickly looked up to see Slytherin hovering over him. He then frowned at what he just heard. "Use the what?" He asked. The grumpy ghost nodded towards the Dementor. "It's a spell that was created a long time ago. It's a spell of souls! If you truely want to free a soul that a Dementor has swallowed, it's the Esuna Mithra." He said. Darien just stared at him. "B-but...that's advanced magic, isn't it?! I can't do that kind of magic! I'm just a kid!"

Slytherin shook his head. "It may be advanced magic, Darien Lupin, but it's the only choice you have. Just trust me. I will walk you through it." He said with much sincerity.

Darien stared at him before looking up at the Dementor, which was still trying to escape but the raven kept getting into its way, angering it even more. The young Gryffindor took a deep breath before looking back at Slytherin. "Okay! What do I have to do?!" He asked. Slytherin just nodded. "First thing, tell your friend to get back. This can be very nasty if you aim it in the wrong direction." he said. Darien stared at him with wide eyes before he looked at Lionel, who was watching the Aurors trying to hit the Umbra. "Lionel," The blonde looked at his friend when he spoke. "I think you better get behind something."

Lionel frowned. "Huh? Why?"

Darien shook his head as he pulled out his wand. "Trust me. You're better off not knowing. Get behind something." He said. Lionel just looked wide eyed at him before he quickly climbed over the stone wall, and hovered behind it.

Darien looked back at Slytherin. "Okay! Now what?"

The grumpy ghost just looked up at the Dementor through narrowed eyes before he gritted his teeth. "Concentrate very, very hard on what soul you want. You have to call out the name in your mind when you cast the spell. And you better do it correctly or you might destroy it." That really worried Darien. "While concentrating on the soul, speak these words. _Esuna Mithras. _You will have to drawl the _ras_ very long though. Now practice it."  
The young Gryffindor took a deep breath before trying. It didn't seem to satisfy Slytherin. "Drawl the _ras, _boy, or it won't work. Say it like this. _Esuna Mithras._" He chanted. Darien took another deep breath and did so. This time he did it much better. Slytherin nodded. "Good. Now aim your wand and say it very loudly and clearly. And remember to concentrate on the soul."

"How do I do that?!" Darien asked quickly.

Slytherin just looked at him. "Think the soul's name. Call it out. The Esuna Mithra spell will open up the Dementor's stomache where it keeps the souls and will only let one soul out. The one that is being summoned. And that one only."

Darien nodded as he pointed his wand towards the Dementor, which was now trying its hardest to flying away. He stared hard after it before lashing his wand hard after it. "Esuna Mithras!" He said as loudly and clearly as he could. The only thing that happened was russet colored sparks flying but nothing else. But that seemed to make Slytherin quite happier than he usually was. "Good! Do it again! But much louder and clearer! You almost had it! Hurry! It's getting away!" He barked.

Darien gritted his teeth as he tried his hardest to concentrate. He lashed out his wand again. "Esuna Mithras!" He bellowed as loud as he could, while thinking of Draco Malfoy.

Golden-brown sparks really shot out of the blackish-red wand. And they were a lot brighter than Darien had thought that they were. It really got everyone's attention when the sparks flew up into the sky after the Dementor. The Dementor turned so suddenly just as the sparks flew around it. There was a loud screaming noise echoing in the air. Darien was on the verge of dropping his wand and covering his ears but he saw Slytherin's transparent hands wrap around his wrist and hand, almost holding his hand tightly closed. "Do not let go of the spell, boy!" He had barked over the screaming.

So Darien held on even tighter to his wand, ignoring the fact that he could actually feel Slytherin's hands on his. He just gritted his teeth and concentrated harder. 'Come on, Draco! Come out of there!' He thought.

There was a flash of bright golden light around the Dementor and immediately something was happening. It nearly startled Darien to see a head slowly drift out of the Dementor's chest and slowly starting to come out from it. The Dementor did not seem to like that at all. It began clawing at its chest, trying to push the soul back in.

Darien could feel a painful tug inside his head and he had the feeling that if he didn't do something, his spell wasn't going to work. Slytherin seemed to guess that much as well. Because he growled. "ESUNA MITHRAS!" He snapped. Darien quickly said it again when he did. The golden-brown sparks grew brighter and the soul actually came tumbling out of it. It was then the Dementor fled, apparentlly not caring that it had just lost one of its precious souls. It must have figured that if it didn't get out of there right away, something worst would happen.

No one really paid much of attention the fleeing Dementor. All eyes were only the glowing white orb, floating high above them. It slowly drifted closer to where Darien was, who was now allowed to lower the wand. The 11 year old stared with astonishment as the glowing white orb stopped right in front of him and then turned into some kind of spirit.

It startled him even more when he saw that it was truely Draco Malfoy.

The soul just grinned down at him before nodding. _'Good one, Dari. See ya soon.' _It then shot up into the sky, flying very quickly, almost looking like a shooting star away from Hogwarts.

Darien just stared after it before the exhaustion caught up to him. He immediately felt his legs give out under him and he fell to his knees, dropping his wand. He breathed rather hard as he glanced up at Slytherin, who was standing above him, a smirk on his face. "Someday, boy, you are going to be one powerful wizard." And then darkness settled in.


	19. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18.**

Darien felt the sun shining down on his face, and something was gently touching his forehead. He groaned as he tried his hardest to waking up but his body really didn't want to. But eventually he won the struggle because he finally was able to open his eyes, which really hurt because the light was shining right into them. He winced, turning his head a little. Someone laughed and then drew the curtains over the window so that the sun wasn't shining down on his face. Darien groaned again as he reopened his eyes and blinked several times. Sitting above him, was his mother.

Hermione sighed with relief to see that he was finally awake. Yet, she was feeling quite annoyed that once again her oldest son managed to get himself hurt. She faintly smiled when he looked in her direction. "Morning, Darien." She said softly before she brushed his bangs out of his multicolored eyes.

Darien frowned as he just stared up at her before looking around. He was in the Gryffindor House, in his own bed. It surprised him to see that he wasn't in the Infirmary again. "Mom?"

Hermione nodded as she just looked down at him. "It's me. How are you feeling?" She asked gently.

Darien rubbed his head, wondering what had happened. He hadn't actually remembered right away. All he was remembering at the second was the detention with Snape. "Uh...I'm okay. I guess. What are you doing here?" He asked. Hermione shook her head as she just stared down at him before she folded her arms. "I'm here because you can't seem to stay out of trouble. Darien, I swear, you are..." She was saying.

Darien laughed softly as he shook his head. "...I'm going to give you an early grave someday. Yeah, I know." He said. Hermione narrowed her eyes playfully at him before she shook her head. "What did you do, Darien? What spell was you trying to do the other night?"

That took Darien by surprise. 'The other night? How long have I been out?' He shook his head. "What are you talking about, mom? How long have I been asleep?"

Hermione sighed as she shook her head once again. "You've been out for two days now. Ever since the Dementor attacked, along with the Umbra. I was so worried. So was your father. When he contacted me to tell me that you were injured again, I nearly had a heart attack." She said now giving him a lecturing look.

Darien frowned as he slowly remembered what happened. Then his eyes shot open wide and he bolted up into a sitting position. "Draco! Did it work, mom?! Is he awake?!" He asked. Hermione just frowned at him. "What? What about Draco?" She asked. Darien frowned. "You mean, his soul hasn't returned yet?" He asked with worry.

"Darien, what are you talking about?" Hermione asked.

The world almost crashed down on Darien as he thought about the possibility that Draco's soul never made it back to his body. What if it hadn't worked at all? It really brought dread onto his shoulders. "No-nothing, mom. Never mind. Can I get up now?" He asked. Hermione just stared at him before she slowly nodded. "Yeah. I think it's best. Professor Dumbledore wants to question you about that spell you used. It has everyone baffled on what you did. None of the students knows about it and it's probably best if it stays that way. But you still have some explaining to do." She said. Darien nodded. "Okay." He watched her leave the room before he climbed out of his bed and started to pull on his cloths.

"I see you're doing much better."

Darien gave a jolt but then relaxed. He was starting to get used to Slytherin just popping out of no where like he did. He turned around as he pulled on his jeans and then his shirt. "Hey, Slytherin. Why didn't it work? Mom said that Draco hasn't woken up yet."

Slytherin shook his head. "Sometimes it takes time for the soul to return back to body. But eventually it will. So you must be patient. For all we know, it could already be back with its body. The Esuna Mithra spell is a very ancient spell and is not used anymore by your modern wizards. That's probably why your Headmaster is confused about it and he wants to question you about it." the ghost told him.

Darien only nodded. "So, sometime Draco will wake up again. Right?" He asked. The Slytherin ghost slowly nodded. "I'm sure he will. But there is a possibility that he won't."

That really didn't help Darien's nerves. "But you said..."

"How long has this boy being souless, Lupin?" He asked impatiently.

Darien just stared at him before he nodded. "About 11 to 12 years. Why?" He asked. Slytherin shook his head. "It's going to take a while for the body to wake up. You have to give him time. He's been gone for 12 years. The body won't just suddenly wake up after the soul returns. He might be out for a little longer, the limit is a week to a month. Be patient, Lupin. He will wake up. And when he does, he will not remember what happened to him when he first lost his soul. He's going to be very confused when he wakes up. He's going to think he's still that sixteen year old boy. Until everything comes crashing down on him. It may leave a mark on him."

He could feel his heart dropping to hear this. He didn't like it. "You mean...he won't remember me? He won't remember what I did and that I used to talk to him and he talked back?" Darien asked.

Slytherin only shook his head. "I'm sorry, Young Lupin. But he won't remember anything about you. That's the downside of returning a soul to someone who has been souless for so long. But you will have a chance to be reaquainted with him once he comes back."

Darien sighed but then smiled. "Yeah. That'd be cool."

Just then the door opened and in walked Rex and Lionel, who both looked very excited to see Darien up again. "Hey! Awsome! You're finally awake!" The blonde said happily. Darien only grinned at him.

* * *

As the three Gryffindors made their way into the Great Hall, many eyes turned onto Darien, who immediately groaned. "Man, here we go again." He grumbled. Lionel rolled his eyes. "Yeah, if you think this is bad, wait till you find out what happened to Snape."  
Darien just frowned. "What do you mean?" He asked as he looked towards the Teacher's tables, only to find that Snape was not there. All of the teachers were, but not Snape. It confused Darien quite a bit to see that the Potions Professor wasn't there. "Hey, where is Snape?" He then noticed the looks that Lionel and Rex were giving each other. "What? What happened?"

Lionel blew out a sigh as they went over and sat down. "Uh, Darien. You know how we had detention with Snape and when we left with Sirius, Snape was still in the greenhouses, picking the last of the herbs we were suppose to get?"

Darien was already not liking it. He just looked uneasily at his friend. "Yeah. Why do you ask?" he Rex shook his head as he leaned against the table. "Darien, Snape is at St. Mungo's in critical condition. Someone attacked him that night right after you left with Sirius and Lionel." He said. That practically slapped Darien across the face to hear it. "What?!" He gasped.

Lionel nodded as he looked at him. "Yeah. The Aurors are looking into it but they haven't found out who did it yet. Apparently only just after you left, someone snuck into the greenhouse and stuck Snape in the back with a knife. He was found several hours later when he hadn't returned to the dungeons. The knife was still in his back and he was bleeding all over the floor. The Aurors had to call for Madam Pomfrey as fast as they could. But when they went back to get him, the knife was gone. So whoever tried to kill Snape must have still been at the greenhouse and they took the knife before anyone could take it into examination." The blonde told his friend.

Darien just stared down at the table with confusion. Someone had tried to kill the Potions Professor. But why? Everyone knew that Snape could be very vile and very mean but why would anyone want to kill him? He hadn't really done anything wrong.

"Darien."

He looked up when someone called his name. It was Sirius, who seemed to be limping for some reason. He looked a little happy to see Darien up but he was also wincing as if in pain. "Hey, Sirius. What happened?" Darien asked.

Sirius just shook his head as he tapped his leg. "Oh, just a busted leg. That Dementor attack made me break my leg in the fountain but it's healing quite nicely. It's not broken anymore, thanks to Madam Pomfrey. But it still smarts now and then. She couldn't really do anything for the bruising. Don't worry about me, bud. How about you? I missed all the action of what happened that night. Damn Dementor knocked me out by throwing me into that fountain."

Darien only shrugged. "I'm all right. I'm not hurt or anything."

Sirius nodded. "Good. I was worried when I found out that you were out for two days. Of course, I did hear what you did." He said raising an eyebrow. "That's why I came over. Dumbledore wants to talk to you. So does the Aurors. They want to know what you did to that Dementor."

The 11 year old nodded as he climbed off the bench. "Okay. I guess I have to tell them. But it's going to confuse the hell outta you." He said. Sirius pulled a face as he started to walk with Darien towards the Teacher's tables. "You know what? I think your mum might be right. You do need to stop hanging out with me." he said. Darien grinned up at him. "Never." He said and they both laughed.

* * *

Darien was taken into the back room where the Dumbledore and the Aurors were waiting. Including his parents. Darien only glanced around the room before looking at his parents, who tried their best to giving him a smile. He then noticed Slytherin pacing near the wall on his right and even the raven was there. As soon as she saw Darien, she flew over to him, landing on his shoulder. It made him smile. "Hey, you. You all right?" he asked stroking her back. The raven cawed once, tapping the side of his head gently before just sitting still and quiet. Darien then turned his attention onto the adults, who all greeted him with smiles or nods.

"Good morning, Darien. How are you feeling?" Dumbledore asked pleasantly.

Darien only shrugged. "I'm all right." He then frowned. "Professor, I heard about Professor Snape. Is he going to be okay?"

Several people frowned, including Dumbledore. But then the Headmaster forced a smile. "I do hope so, young Lupin. I really do." He then shook his head. "But we're not here to talk about that."

Darien nodded as he stroked Rowena's breast. "I know." He blew out a sigh. "I'll try to explain it as best as I can, sir. But even I'm confused of how it worked." He said. Everyone only nodded as they kept their attention onto Darien. "Slytherin taught me that spell while Rowena was keeping the Dementor from escaping. He called it the Esuna Mithra spell. He said that it was a summoning of a soul. It's suppose to help bring a soul back out of a Dementor." Darien then frowned as he tried to remember. He could already see how confused some of the adults were. But Dumbledore was taking in the information very carefully and he didn't look confused at all.

"Interesting. And tell me, how does this spell work?" He just asked.

Darien shook his head as he tried very hard to remember. "I can't remember. It happened pretty fast." He then looked over at Slytherin. "Slytherin, help me out here." Everyone looked over to see who he was talking to before they remembered that he could see Salazar Slytherin.

The ghost only rolled his eyes as he let his hands drop to his sides and he turned towards Darien. "To use the spell you must concentrate on the soul you want." He said. Darien nodded and repeated his words. "Then you must say Esuna Mithras very loudly and clearly while concentraing on the name of the soul. It will open up the Dementor's stomache to free only one soul, the one that you want to free." He repeated the words as soon as Slytherin said them.

Everyone was now looking astonished. Hermione then covered her mouth, looking very surprised. "That's why you were asking about Draco! It was his soul you were trying to free." She said with a gasp.

Darien only nodded. "Yeah. That's right, mum. Slytherin also said that sometimes the spell doesn't work, so that's probably why it doesn't exist anymore. He said that if it ever does, it takes time to let the soul's body wake up." Then he frowned as he remembered the other part. "He also says that when the person does wake up, they don't remember what happened. Nothing at all. When Draco wakes up, he's going to think he's still a boy, mom, dad. He's not going to remember me at all." He said with a frown.

Hermione and Remus only glanced at one another before they both walked over to him and pulled him into a group hug. "It's going to be okay, Darien. We'll remind him. Maybe he'll remember if we tell him."

Slytherin shook his head. "Sorry. But it doesn't work that way." He said. So Darien told his parents that same thing. He then looked at Dumbledore for what he had to say about it.

Dumbledore only smiled at him. "Darien, I've never heard of this spell but I believe you. Each and every one of these Aurors had said that they saw something come out of the Dementor and they couldn't explain it. We shall see what happens after this. In the mean time, do you have anything to say?"

Darien was quiet for a minute before he nodded. "Yeah, Professor. I need permission to go into the Dark Forest."

Everyone just stared at him with surprise. "What?" Hermione asked seriously.

Darien glanced at her before looking back at the Headmaster. "Sir, I can explain. You see, Rex, Lionel and I started talking about how we can keep the Umbra away from me. Rex had an idea of using something called Lightstones. They're suppose to be white rocks that shine in the dark and they'll keep the Umbra away from me." He then glanced over at Slytherin who was shaking his head as if telling him that this was a bad idea in telling them."Sir, if they work against the Umbra, then maybe it'll be worth going into the Dark Forest for them." Darien added.

No one spoke for the longest time before Dumbledore frowned. "And tell me why do you want to go into the Dark Forest? It's very dangerous, Darien, to go in there."

Darien shook his head. "Because Slytherin says he knows where they're at. He wants to take me there to get some."

There was a long silence before Hermione shook her head. "No. You are not getting permission to go into the Dark Forest. That is not happening." She said seriously. Darien looked up at her. "But, mom. What if..." he shut up as soon as Hermione gave her the stern look that told him to zip the lip. He knew that look very well. It was the look to tell her sons that if they didn't start listening to her, there would be trouble.

Remus shook his head. "Is there anyway Salazar Slytherin could just tell you where to go? We can send someone else out there to get these...Lightstones."

Darien looked over at Slytherin, who shook his head. "There are not exact coordinates for the location of the stones. I have to take you there." He said. Darien nodded and looked up at his father. "He's says no. He has to take you there himself."

Remus sighed before looking back at Dumbledore. "Albus, what's your saying in this?"

Dumbledore had a very thoughtful look before he looked into Darien's eyes. "I know what he's talking about. I have heard of Lightstones. The stones of eternal light. Magical stones from the dark ages. Gifts from the Great wizard, Merlin. I've heard of them, but I do not know the location. If these stones truely could keep the Umbra away from Darien, then we must take the risk."

Hermione opened her mouth to protest but Remus gently touched her lips with his fingers. "Swiftstar, I'll go with Darien. I promise you that I won't let anything happen to him. You trust me, right?"

Hermione stared at him before she sighed. She looked at Darien. "Darien, I swear to god that if you get hurt doing this, you will be grounded all summer long and I swear I will never forgive you. Do you understand?" She asked. Darien nodded with a faint smile. "I won't get hurt, mom. I promise." he said. Hermione gave him a stern look before she looked over at the Aurors, almost asking who would go with her husband and son.

Immediately Harry and Ron stepped forward, holding their chins high. "We'll go with Remus and Darien, Hermione."

Moody then limped forward. "I know a lot 'bout the Dark Forest. Count me in." He growled.

Hermione only smiled before she looked over at Sirius, who stepped closer. "I'll go with, too. Remus and I know that forest like the backs of our hands." He said holding up his hand before he frowned as he spotted something on the back it. "Hey, where did that spot come from?"

Everyone immediately broke out into laughter. Even Slytherin had snorted. Hermione blew out a sigh and then gave her nod of approval. "All right. We'll go."

Remus then frowned. "We?"

Hermione gave him a very stern look. "Do you honestly think I'm going to let you have all the fun, Moony?" She asked smiling slyly. Remus then grinned as did the others. "Well, then it's settled." Dumbledore said. Everyone nodded.

* * *

Finally everyone had set off towards the Dark Forest. Several people were watching the group go, being escorted by Hagrid, of course. Darien just couldn't look at him at all for what he had done to his dog. He was so ashamed that he had been the one to kill Fang. He just kept his head lowered as they walked across the field towards the Dark Forest and the Lake. The raven was flying above everyone's heads, cawing now and then.

When they reached the edge of the forest, everyone started to go in before having to pause because Darien had stopped. Hagrid had laid his big hand on the boy's shoulder, holding him back. The 11 year old looked up at the half giant nervously, who looked down at him. "Jest ta let you know, Darien, I'm not mad at you. I know tha's what yer been thinking for the past few months. I know fer a fact that changing inter a werewolf for the first time is very hard. It's uncontrollable and when it's a kid, like you, that it happens to, you can't do anything about it." Hagrid told him.

Darien faintly smiled up at him, yet it was very pained. "I'm really sorry, Hagrid." He said weakly.

The half giant only shook his head before he gave him a one armed hug and they both started to follow the others. Hermione and Remus gave their son a smile, which he returned.

After a few paces into the forest, everyone stopped and looked around. "All right, Darien. Where to?" Remus asked. Darien looked up at Slytherin, who was hovering close by. The grumpy ghost was looking around before he pointed. "Northeast." He just said and Darien nodded. He took up the lead with his parents right behind him, along with the Aurors.

Darien could see the raven flying ahead before she would wait in a tree on a low branch. It was like she was keeping watch for any danger. Luckily there wasn't any danger for a while.

They walked on, pausing now and then to ask Darien where to go. Slytherin would give the answer and they walked on. They searched for hours. It was well after noon and it was starting to get dark because of the thick trees above them. Not to mention the clouds, high in the sky. They eventually had to stop because Darien really needed to rest. After a five minute break, they went on.

After a long time of travelling, they finally came to the lakeside, where Slytherin stopped and looked around with a frown.

"Slytherin, is this it?" Darien asked while leaning against a boulder, trying to catch his breath.

The ghost just looked around before he shook his head. "I think we may have gone a little farther than we were suppose to." He said. Darien groaned. "Slytherin, do you even know where it is?" He could see the Aurors starting to get agitated when he said that.

The ghost gave him a grumpy look. "Of course I know where it is. The beach with white stones should be here somewhere. It was here years and years ago. There is no possibly way that someone could have picked up so many Lightstones." He then looked at several bushes. "Of course, the vegetation has grown very rapidly. It's possible that the stones are hidden under the bushes."

Darien nodded before he looked at the adults. "He said that the stones should be around here somewhere. They might be hidden under the bushes and trees." He told them all.

The adults all nodded before looking around at one another. "All right. Everyone, start searching for white stones." Harry said.

Ron grumbled as he began pushing bushes apart to look through them. "This better not be a wild **ghost** chase." He then faked a look of surprise. "Oh! I mean, goose." He said sarcastically. Slytherin was giving the red haired Auror a very dark look after that joke. Darien just shook his head as he began to walk along the rocky beach, looking for any white stones.

They all searched for almost hour before they grew agitated again. Darien was now looked through the forest line with Harry at his side. "Hey, Darien, mind if I ask you a question?" He asked as they looked.

Darien just shrugged before nodding. "Sure."

"During Christmas, you asked about some of the Death Eaters. Why were asking about Ian Whitman's father?" Harry asked. Darien looked up at his 'Uncle' as he tried to think of something to say but then he shook his head with a sigh. "I overheard Whitman telling his friends that he wants to challenge me to a Wizard's duel because he got detention from Snape for teasing me about the first Dementor attack. He said that his dad was teaching him the Dark Arts and he was going to use some really bad hexes on me during our duel." He shook his head again. "He told his friends that his father was a Death Eater. I just wanted to know if it was true or not. I thought he might have been trying to impress his friends."

Harry shook his head as he looked under a large bush and then stood back up. "No, his father's a Death Eater, all right." He paused with a frown before he looked at Darien. "Darien, did you ever hear about Rex's family?" He asked. Darien looked up at him with surprise but he nodded. "Yeah. Rex told me what happened to them. We haven't even told Lionel yet. I think Rex is afraid of what he might say. Why?"

"Darien, what I'm about to tell you, you can not tell Rex or do anything rash. Promise me that." Harry said sounding tired.

Darien paused before he nodded. "Okay. I promise."

Harry sighed as he stopped walking and faced the young Gryffindor. "Darien, Ian Whitman's father, Taurine Whitman, was really into muggle hunting. Especially in the Americas where the Ministry of Magic couldn't do anything about them. It was up to the Government of Magic to take care of it." He shook his head. "Taurine was one of the Death Eaters that killed Rex's parents."

That really surprised Darien. His mouth had fallen as he stared up at Harry with shock. He didn't know what to say. So it had been Whitman's father that had been responcible for Rex's pain. "No wonder he's so mean to Rex. He must know what his father did to him."

Harry nodded. "Yeah. The Death Eaters that Whitman ran with always targeted certain muggles. So they knew the names of the muggles they killed. Eventually, Ian must know who Rex is through his father. And that's why he picks on him."

Darien lowered his head as he thought about it. "Man, that's not fair at all. I can't let Whitman keep picking on Rex like that. He's my friend and he's already suffered enough."

Harry faintly smiled before he wrapped his arm around Darien. "Don't worry about it, Darien. We're close on Taurine Whitman's trail. He can't keep on running from us. He's running out of places to hide. We will get him." He said. Darien smiled. "Thanks, Harry." He said. Harry only nodded and he started to walk ahead when he spotted Ron. Darien just watched him before he looked around and started to head a little deeper into the forest, just to check there. He could hear Rowena cawing above him and it made him look up at her. "What?" He called to her.

The raven only flapped her wings and she cawed even louder. Darien only shrugged as he started to climb over a log to look over.

Suddenly there was a loud rumble and the ground started shaking under him. He immediately froze, his heart now thudding against his chest. "Uh-oh." was all he said before there was a loud crack and rumble before the ground under Darien caved in. "AHHHH!" He cried out as he fell into the hole under him.

Everyone who had heard him spun around just to see the dirt fly up from the hole. "Darien!" Harry yelled and raced back towards the spot where Darien had been.

Darien groaned as soon as he hit the bottom of the pit. Dust and debri had fallen on top of him but luckily he wasn't hurt. He coughed a few times to un-inhale the dust he breathed in. He just sat there, smacking at the dust off his clothes. "Darien!" He heard Harry yelling. He could even hear his mother screaming his name from above them. "I'm okay!" He called.

"Darien! What happened?" Harry called.

Darien snorted as he continued to brush the dust off his cloths. "I fell into a hole! What does it look like?" He called in a joking way. He heard Harry laughed but his parents didn't seem amused. "Just sit tight, Darien! We'll get you out of there." Remus called.

Darien only shrugged as he looked around the dark pit. He couldn't really see anything but the dust hovering around him. He sat there for a minute before he stood up and and started walking around. He then began to see that the pit was actually an underground cave. And then he spotted them.

There were several glowing orbs on the ground, illuminating the ground they were lying on.

Darien frowned for a second then he bent down next to them. His frown immediately turned into a smile when he realized what they were. They were glowing white stones. "All right." He said before looking up at the hole, just to see Slytherin hover down the opening. "Hey! I've found the Lightstones!"

"What?" Ron called down in the hole.

Darien picked up one of the stones, which immediately started glowing brighter. "I said I found the Lightstones! They're down here!" He said. There was a few voices talking at once. "All right, Darien! Collect some while we're trying to come down to get you!" Remus called down in the hole. Darien nodded before he started pocketing the stones.

However, he stopped when he noticed something in the shadows. His heart nearly stopped as his imagination started to go wild. He just sat there, staring. He then noticed Slytherin hovering close to him. "What are you looking at, boy?"

Darien then pointed. "There's something over there." He whispered. He slowly took out his and pointed. "Lumos." He said and immediately the tip of the wand lit up. And Darien really began yell in fear as soon as he saw it.

Above the hole, everyone heard Darien yelling and they all started to panic. "Darien! What's wrong?!" Remus called but the only answer he recieved was fearful cries from Darien. Hermione covered her mouth as tears began to fill her eyes. "He's hurt! I know he's hurt! There's got to be something dangerous down there!" She cried. Remus quickly wrapped his arm around her. "He's going to be fine, Hermione! Just calm down!" He said. Hermione just shook her head.

Harry, however, just gritted his teeth before he jumped down into the hole. "Harry!" Everyone called but he ignored them.

Harry fell down into the hole, waiting to hit the bottom. Luckily the hole wasn't that deep so he didn't get hurt. He landed on his feet, only having to fall to his knee. He had his wand out very quickly and was aiming towards where he could hear Darien, whimpering. "Darien!"

Darien didn't even look at him as he just stared at what was lying before him. Eventually, Harry started staring with wide eyes too as he slowly made his way over to Darien's side. "Oh my god." He whispered.

Even Slytherin was staring with astonishment. He couldn't believe what he was looking at.

In front of the three of them, was skeleton draped with raggy clothing. The skeleton was lying against the stone wall with large rocks lying all around it and over its legs. But it wasn't just the skeleton that startled them. It was the snake skeletons wrapped around its bones and sitting around it.

Darien slowly climbed to his feet and moved closer to see better. It looked like the bones had been there for a very, very long time. He could see how the bones aged so much that they almost looked like wood. "Darien, don't get too close." Harry warned him.

"It's dead, Harry. What's it going to do?" Darien asked as he bent down beside the skeleton.

Harry then shrugged and moved closer himself. He bent down to his knee and began looking the skeleton over. He fingered the aged rags, frowning a little. "Who do you think it is, Harry?" Darien asked. Harry just shook his head as he carefully looked it over. "I have no idea, Darien."

"I know who it is." Slytherin spoke up.

Darien looked over at him with a frown, seeing the shocked look on the ghost's face. "Slytherin? What's wrong?" He asked. The ghost never looked at him as he just stared at the skeleton. He then bent down in front of the skeleton, almost searching for something on its person.

Then he pointed at something in the dirt. "There."

The young Gryffindor just looked at what it was before he reached down and dug whatever it was up out of the dirt. It was some kind of metal clasp. Darien just frowned before he started rubbing the dirt off and before he knew it, he was looking at some kind of crest. It didn't take a genius to guess whose crest it was. Because on it was a large S and a snake wound around it.

"Oh my god." Darien whispered as he just stared at it.

Harry looked just as alarmed but he then shook his head. "Darien, this has to be some kind of Slytherin student from years ago. He must have gotten lost in the Dark Forest and fell down this hole. These snakes, they must have bit him or something. That's what killed him."

Darien shook his head as he just held the clasp. Then he looked straight at Slytherin, looking at the clasp hooked to his cloak. "Harry, this isn't a student." He then looked at the Auror. "This is Salazar Slytherin, himself."


	20. Chapter 19

**Author's Notes: Thank you for your reviews. Unfortunately I'm pressed for time today so there's no quick shout outs today. So let's jump right to the story. I'll tell you a little about this chapter though. This chapter is going to answer quite a few questions that you might have. It's going to explain quite a bit. **

**On with the story!

* * *

****Chapter 19.**

Darien sat in his dorm room, still looking at the clasp in his hand and petting Rowena with the other one. He had been very quiet for the past few hours since he returned with the adults. They had left Hagrid and Moody behind so that they could find the grave again. Then they would return for the two and the skeleton of Salazar Slytherin.  
When they had returned, they were carrying a small box. Darien had learned that they had shrunk the skeleton to a very small size and carried him that way. They didn't want to the students to know what they have found just yet. Darien really didn't hear what happened after that. All he did was go to his room and sit on his bed, staring at the clasp.

"Hey, boy. Are you going to be all right?"

Darien didn't look up at Slytherin when he heard him. He just stared at the clasp in his hand. "How did you die, Slytherin? Did those snakes kill you?" He asked quietly. There was a long silence before he looked up at the ghost, who was looking very thoughtful, almost trying to remember something.

"No...they were trying to protect me." He said finally. "Trying to protect me from..." He paused trying to remember. The ghost then touched his head as if he was getting a headache. "I don't know. I can not remember." He said. Darien just watched him in silence. He then turned and picked up the journal. "Why don't we just find out then?" He opened the book. "You know where the entry is, the one that has to do with your death. So why don't you just tell me and then you can read it to me?" He asked. Slytherin paused before he moved closer and nodded. "Very well, Lupin. Open it to the middle of the pages and take out your wand."

Darien just gave him a surprised look but then he did what he was told. It was then he noticed that the red S on the wand's handle began to glow.

"What the..."

"Hey, Darien. What are you doing?"

Darien looked up to see Lionel and Rex walk into the room. He gave them a faint smile before shaking his head. "Nothing. Just trying to read the book, that's all." He said. Rex frowned. "But I thought you couldn't read the book." He said. Darien shook his head. "I can't. But I get the feeling that something's about to happen so don't get alarmed when it does."

His friends just gave him a confused stare but he didn't pay attention to them. He just looked at Slytherin, who nodded. "Tap the book with your wand."

Darien did and immediately bright light began to shine down the middle of the pages. It surprised Darien and his two friends to see the light coming out from the book but before they could do anything, the light grew brighter and it blinded their vision.  
When all three of them opened their eyes again, they were in for a surprise. They were not in the Gryffindor Tower anymore. They were in the Chamber of Secrets. Darien wasn't too surprised as he looked around. He had been there before in his dreams but his two friends were stunned. They looked around the Chamber, looking very flabbergasted.

"What the...where are we?" Lionel asked.

Darien shrugged as he stood up from the ground and glanced around the Chamber. "This is the Chamber of Secrets, guys. Slytherin's secret chamber he built while Hogwarts was being built way back then. I remember this place. Harry used to tell me stories about it and I've seen it in my dreams." He then frowned. "Slytherin is suppose to be showing me how he died. Why did he bring us here?"

"Are we in the book, Darien?" Rex asked as he stared up at the high cieling.

Darien slowly nodded. "Yeah. I think so. But...I thought he died in the Dark Forest. Not here."

"I did."

Darien jumped as he spun around. But he wasn't the only one. Even Lionel and Rex jumped as they spun on their heels. There standing right behind them was a live version of Salazar Slytherin. He looked just like how he did when he was alive. His dark green cloak fell down to his ankles, while the hood was pulled over his head and he was wearing black clothing under it. His dark eyes were on each of the boys.

"Oh, my god! Who the hell is that?!" Lionel exclaimed.

Darien gave them a surprised look. "You can see him too?!" He asked with shock.

Slytherin looked at him, a smirk on his face. "Of course they can see me, boy. We are inside the book's memories, remember? I am a mere memory of my own journal. That's why they can see me while here." Then the founder began looking around the Chamber, as if he had never seen this place before. "Amazing, isn't it? What one wizard could do with magic, creating one of the most amazing chambers in Hogwarts."

Lionel and Rex both glanced around before the blonde crinkled his nose. "Actually, it's kind of creepy."

Darien and Rex both snorted with laughter while Slytherin rolled his eyes and looked at them. "The Umbra hid here, boys, away from everyone else. It was very dark and there was little light. It was the perfect hiding place for a Darkness demon. Almost like a bat, he could never go into the light. It hurt his eyes, his skin. That's what you need to use against him." He then turned around and looked straight at Darien. "You want to see how it began? How he started to manipulate me, turning me against my friends and then killed me? Watch carefully then." And he suddenly vanished.

"Man, and you're friends with that guy, right? He's really weird, Darien." Lionel said shaking his head.

Suddenly they heard a loud snap and the creaking of a giant door. All three Gryffindor students turned around and looked down the long row of stone Snake heads to see that the door to the chamber was opening up. To their astonishment a younger version of Salazar Slytherin walked through, waving his hand once and the door slammed shut behind him. Darien instantly remembered this. He had seen it before. In his very first dream of Slytherin's memories.

The young Salazar Slytherin just walked down the rows of the snake heads, heading straight towards the three Gryffindor students, who quickly backed away to the side. There was a cool smirk on the young man's face as he walked right up to the edge of the small pool, before the giant head of Slytherin. And then he frowned as he turned and started looking around.

"Umbra?" He called.

The three boys heard a very dark chuckle that brought goosebumps to their arms and made them shudder. Darien immediately looked up when he heard the familiar flutter of the leather wings. Lionel and Rex both looked to see a dark figure fly down and land right in front of Salazar Slytherin, still hidden in the darkness. They could only see the peircing red eyes glinting back at the tall young man, standing before him, almost glaring.

"Slytherin, you have once again returned to the chamber. Good. How are things going topside?" The demon asked.

Slytherin scowled at him. "What was the meaning of showing yourself and scaring Rowena! I thought you were going to stay down here in the safety of my chamber!" He snapped.

It was then the demon decided to step forward into what light that was inside the chamber. Darien heard his friends both cry out softly but he just watched the large black demon stand before Slytherin. It was the same demon that had fought the Dementor that night. It's forked tail was swinging back and forth, almost like a cat's. "I was only playing, Salazar. I did not mean to frighten your poor beloved away." The demon sneered.

Slytherin just gritted his teeth, giving the Umbra a look of warning. "We had a deal, Umbra. You would stay out of sight as long as I protected you from them. Do you wish for Godric to find out about you?!" He growled at the demon.

Darien didn't like the look on the demon's face after Slytherin had said that. He was glaring at the founder, almost in a very deadly way. "Slytherin, if you wish for me to help you, then you would not threaten me. You must not get involved with Rowena. She is Gryffindor's lover, not yours. I have told you time and time again, Rowena is using you to find out your secrets." The demon then sneered. "Our secrets. You must not let her do such a thing. You must push her away."

A hurt look appeared on Slytherin's face. He even stepped back, tilting his head away, but still looking at the dark demon. "No, she loves me. We even made love under the full moon..." He was saying. Darien saw Lionel and Rex's faces flush to hear that part.

"No, Slytherin." Umbra interupted the young Founder. "You are letting her run you. She is only using you. They will betray you, Slytherin. And you are letting them. You must attack back. You must take order." He said in a demanding way. Slytherin turned his head away before turning the rest of his body. He looked very hurt and betrayed and the three boys could see a shiver running through him. The young Slytherin just looked into the water he was standing over. He blew out a sigh as he closed his eyes. "What shall I do? I can not hurt her. I love her."

The demon stepped closer to him and placed his claw onto his shoulder. "I know, Salazar. But you must accept it.The only way of winning her, is to kill Godric Gryffindor." He said before sneering while Slytherin wasn't looking at him.

Slytherin's eyes shot open to hear that before jerked away and glared up at the demon. "No! I will do no such thing! Godric is my friend, Umbra! I can't do that to him! He saved my life and I am in his debt!" He said, in a harsh tone. The Umbra only scowled at him before turning away. "I see. Well, if you can't trust me, then we best drop the deal." He said. Slytherin frowned with hesitation. "What are you saying, Umbra?"

"I'm saying, if you don't trust me, then how can we be friends? I can not spy on your enemies if you don't trust my words." The demon said in a low hiss.

Slytherin sighed as he lowered his head. "Please, Umbra, forgive me then. I do not mean to distrust you. It is just so hard to believe that Godric would betray me like the way you say he is. He has been my friend for a long time now. As have you. Give me some time to think about it." He said in a low voice. The Umbra turned back, being very quiet for a moment then he smirked. "Very well, young Slytherin. I shall give you time. And I will continue collecting evidence that your so called friends are going to betray you. Hopefully, you do not get hurt in the process."

Slytherin only nodded as he turned and started towards the chamber door. He didn't even look back to see the Umbra smirking at his back. It was then a strange purple aura surrounded the demon and his eyes started to glow a firery red.

Darien almost gasped to see what was happening. "This is when he started to manipulate Slytherin, possessing him into making him do terrible things." He said to his friends.

Lionel and Rex just looked at him. "Are you sure, Dari?"

"Yeah! That's how the Umbra takes over someone's body. I've seen it a few times now. He did it to Paul and he did it to Harris. He even tried to do it to me. So this is when he started to control Slytherin." Darien then looked around. "Slytherin, how is this going to help?"

At that very second, the room around them changed. They were in a dark hallway, lined with silver suits of armor. It was the third floor corridor. Darien, Lionel and Rex looked around with confusion. It wasn't exactly the answer they were looking for but whatever worked. As long they started to understand what the hell Slytherin was showing them. It was at that second, he appeared.

He was a little older this time, by four years. He was even starting to grow his beard. His hair was just a little longer and he still wore black and green robes. He was walking down the long corridor, past the three boys, who watched him. After a minute, Darien looked at his two friends. "Come on. Let's follow him." He said. Lionel and Rex nodded and they all hurried after the memory Slytherin. They followed him to a large wooden door, which he pulled open and stepped inside. The three boys hurried through the door before he could shut it. They weren't exactly sure if they could walk through walls of a memory. But they didn't want to find out.

The next room they were in was very dark with only torchs lit up along the walls. In between and everyone were gargoyles.

Darien glanced at his two friends, who looked back. Then they watched Slytherin slowly walk along the gargoyles, looking each one over before stopping in front of the largest one. A gargoyle with the face of a snake and a lionlike body. Demonic wings were spread out on its back, stretched out as if to touch the ceiling. It was definitely a lot bigger than Slytherin's whole person.

Slytherin stopped in front of it and stared up at its face. His eyes narrowed a little before folded his hands behind his back. "Playing hide and seek again, are we, Umbra?"

To the three Gryffindors surprise, the stoney eyelids of the gargoyle lift up, revealing the wicked red eyes. The dark grey color darkened even more to black skin and the wings folded on the demon's back as it grinned down at Slytherin. The sneer on its ugly face was what scared the three students the most. This creature was way beyond wickedness.

"Hello, Saaaalazar." The creature drawled. "Lovely evening, isn't it?"

Slytherin didn't reply to that question. He just glared at the demon with such sterness that resembled Snape when he was scowling at the Gryffindors. "Umbra, tell me exactly what the hell you were doing last night? Why were the children dreaming of you? I swear I was up all night with Godric, Rowena and Helga trying to calm all of the students. What are you doing, Umbra? Why are you doing this?" He asked in a scolding way.

The Umbra demon just sneered. "I was only playing, Salazar."

"You sure have been doing that quite a lot lately, Umbra. I've had enough of it. Enough with your games. Stop frightening the children and stop trying to turn me against Godric! Because he is my friend! I will not kill him as you want me to do!" He said before he turned away.

However, dark light surrounded him, making him halt in his footsteps. Umbra was growling as he started to take over Slytherin's body. "I will do whatever I want, Slytherin. This is my castle, my domain. And your will is mine." He sneered before stretched out his wings. "Now, turn around."

Slytherin went very rigid as he tried to fight it. But he was forced to turn around anyway. He gritted his teeth, glaring up at the demon. "What...are you doing?!" He managed to hiss through his teeth. Umbra stepped down from the stone block he had been standing on, standing before Slytherin. "Do you remember those spells I helped you create?" Slytherin's face had gone very pale as his eyes lit up. "Yes, my dear friend. We're going to give them a try. On three students. One Hufflepuff student, one Gryffindor student and even a Ravenclaw student." The demon sneered.

The Hogwarts founder tried to shake his head as his body gave a jerk. "NO! I can't! Not to Rowena's..."

"Yes, you can, Slytherin. Either you do it willingly, or unwillingly. You must remember, I did tell you and even showed you the trechery she has been plotting against you. Those three meddling fools are plotting against you, Slytherin. They hate you. You must strike back. And to do it, harm their pathedic students. Now, I am trying to protect you but you are fighting against me. You have been my protector for many years, Salazar. If I must, I will manipulate you to protect you. Now do you trust me or not?"

There was a long silence, before Slytherin lowered his head, closing his eyes. "Yes, Umbra. I trust you."

It went dark after that.

The room changed again. This time it was outside, in the dark woods. The three boys looked around before they spotted an older Slytherin storming through the trees, a very vile look on his face. It was a look Darien had seen before. It was the look when Slytherin had left Hogwarts. Slytherin looked hurt, outraged, betrayed, all negative emotions were on his face.

"Slytherin!"

The three Gryffindor boys jumped when they heard the roar. They turned around just in time to see Godric Gryffindor stomping through the trees. He looked angry, yet beyond confused. His dirty blonde hair was matted down by the sweat upon his brow. His robes were singed from burns. Darien knew this was what happened after Slythering had left, after he had cursed his friends.

"Salazar Slytherin! Halt!" Gryffindor roared as he hurried over.

Slytherin spun around aiming his wand at Gryffindor, a deep loathing look on his face. "Godric! Leave me at peace! I wish to be left alone!" He hissed at him.

Godric stood before him, not seeming to care that there was a wand pointed at his chest. "What has happened to you, my old friend? Why do you think I would I would betray you?! We are great friends! Dear friends for many years now! What madness has befallen on you!"

"Madness is hardly the word, Godric!" Slytherin hissed at him. His eyes flashing dangerously. "It is rage that you see! Rage that you, Godric Gryffindor would betray me! The world's most powerful sorcerer and Dark wizard! This is only the beginning, my _old _friend. From this moment on, the houses of Slytherin and Gryffindor are not longer united! We are enemies! Mortal enemies and forever will be until you give me a reason to trust you again!"

Godric Gryffindor just stared at him before he slowly shook his head. "I do not know what has happened to you, Salazar, but I know that dark magic has touched your heart." His eyes narrowed. "So be it! If you choose to be enemies from this moment on, it is your choice. But be warned, my friend, the madness of the dark magic you wish to possess will destroy you. And remember, if you truly do need my help again, you can count on me. Even though we are enemies!"

Slytherin sneered at him as he continued to point his dark wand at him. "Count on yourself, Godric. And count on those filthy mudbloods, squibs and those pathedic weak students you love so much!" He then turned away, starting to put his wand away.

_"Salazar! This is your chance! Kill him! Destroy him! Do not let him live!" _Umbra's voice hissed through the trees.

Godric Gryffindor looked around, for he had heard the voice as Slytherin and the invisible Gryffindor students had. His eyes wide. "What is that voice?! I have heard it before!"

Slytherin just stood right where he did. His eyes narrowed before he turned and looked around the dark trees. "NO! I will not kill Gryffindor, you trecherous dark demon! He shall live to see the horrors that await him! And you! You will not control me no longer, you poisonous snake!" He hissed into the darkness.

There was an outraged snarl before something dark flew from the threes. Both Gryffindor and Slytherin pulled out their wands, ready to send spells flying. However, Umbra's whip like tail slammed into the golden haired Founder, sending him flying into a tree, while the dark claws snatched Slytherin by the throat, making him drop his wand to grab the claws around his neck. The darkness demon lift Slytherin five feet up into the air, snarling into his face. "How dare you! I have protected you for many years, Salazar! I have been your eyes of the castle and I have helped you become a powerful wizard! And this is how you repay me?! No more! I will not let you stop me from doing what I want to do!"

Slytherin clutched at the demon's wrist, gasping for air and trying to break loose. But he was having trouble by how strong the demon was. "Wha-what are you...are you talking about?!" He gasped.

The demon growled into his face as he narrowed his eyes at him. "Though you shall not live to see the day, Salazar, but I make this world into my own. My own world full of darkness. No one will be able to hide from me. They will do whatever I tell them, if not, I will make them! Just like I made you!" He sneered. "I will be able to possess whoever I want and none of your pathedic race will be able to stop me. The powers of all will belong to me. Soon I will become the most powerful being in this world. All thanks to the power of the Negatus Mysterium."

Slytherin's eyes narrowed before he let out a hiss with the Parseltongue language, beckoning any help that would come.

To his great relief, not moments later, there came a loud, angry hiss from within the trees. It startled the demon enough to make Slytherin dig his nails into his wrist, causing him to release him. Once freed, the Hogwarts founder landed on his feet and bolted away as fast as he could, catching only a glimpse of the Umbra facing a large Ashwinder. There were snarls and hisses from behind him, but he didn't look back. He just kept running, not even looking to see what happened to Godric. He knew that the Umbra wasn't after him. It was after himself. He had caused the demon's anger and he knew that it would chase him.

Suddenly there was a loud crack and the ground from underneath Slytherin gave out just as he stepped onto it. He was swallowed up in darkness as he fell into the very hole that Darien had before. The three Gryffindors had watched him fall into it, with a cry of surprise.

"Do you think he's okay?" Lionel asked as they ran over to the hole and peered into it.

They couldn't see anything but darkness. But there was a groan deep within. A groan of upmost pain. Then everything around them darkened. They looked around and noticed that they were also in the pit. They could see Slytherin sprawled out on the ground, gritting his teeth in pain. He was clutching his left leg, as if it was hurt. Darien tilted his head a little before stepping back in alarm. He wasn't the only one. Lionel and Rex could see it too. Between his ankle and knee, there was blood running down from a wound, where the bone was sticking out. Slytherin had broken his leg from the fall. And what was worst, he didn't have his wand to mend it.

Slytherin grunted painfully before he tried his best to pull himself over to the rocky wall. He winced several times as he did so. But as he reached the wall, he collapsed against it, gasping in pain. The founder leaned his head against the wall, closing his eyes tightly.

"Damn you, Salazar. How could you be such a fool to trust a creature like Umbra. You have unleashed a horror on the world." He growled at himself.

Slytherin sat in silence before he heard the flutterings of wings. His eyes snapped open and he looked around with alarm. It was too dark to see but he knew something was there. He could hear a growl in front of him but it wasn't that close. He measured it to be several feet away from him in fact. "You are there, are not, Umbra?" Slytherin groaned.

There was only a growl in answer before he heard the demon stepping closer. "You have made yourself into a fool, Salazar. Did you obviously think that an ashwinder could kill me?"

Slytherin snorted to himself as he glared around in the dark. "I didn't call it to kill you, Umbra. Only to distract you. What do you want from me? Leave me to die in this tomb of darkness. I can not walk." He muttered. He heard the Umbra chuckling darkly as it began to pace in front of him. "That I will, Slytherin. I will let you rot in this place. But alone, you shalt not. I leave my present." He said as it turned away from him. "Kill him."

There were several growls in the darkness before a flutter of wings. Through the only light above, Slytherin and the Gryffindors saw a man fly through the hole before turning back. He couldn't see him very clearly at all only his frame. But he was tall and slender and by the looks of it, he had long dark hair. "Don't you love my power of transformation, Salazar? Shapeshifting has always been my favorite power. Goodbye, my old friend and rival." The man said into the hole before something fell over the hole.

It just went darker and was harder to see. But the three Gryffindors could hear hissing and growls. Before it went completely silent.

The three opened their eyes and found theirselves back in the Gryffindor Tower. In Darien's hands was the journal of Slytherin. The ghost wasn't standing too far from them, watching the young werewolf. "They were gargoyles that the Umbra set upon me." He finally spoke. Darien just looked at him, of course, Lionel and Rex hadn't for they couldn't hear him anymore, nor see him.

"Why did he kill you?" Darien asked. He saw his two friends look at him in a questioning way before they looked at the empty place where they couldn't see Slytherin.

The ghost shook his head as he turned away and looked towards the window. "I was defying him. I wouldn't work with him anymore. It angered him that I refused to do his bidding." He looked back at Darien. "And that's why he gets angry with you when you defy him. It reminds him of me." He said. Darien looked at his friends. "Are you guys okay?" He asked them.

Lionel and Rex both shook their heads. "Hell no. I don't think I'll be able to sleep for a couple of nights now. That was beyond mental." The blonde said. Darien laughed and shook his head. Before he remembered something that Umbra had said. "Slytherin, the umbra said something about the power of the Negatus Mysterium. What is that?" He asked. Even Lionel and Rex were looking interested to hear what it was. The ghost, however, looked away. He was quiet for a long time before slowly shaking his head. "I don't remember. It is a forbidden magic. By all magic users. No creature, no wizard or witch, nothing is allowed to use it. It's against the laws of Merlin, the greatest wizard of history. I've never seen it happen so I can't tell you anything about it." He told the young Gryffindor.

Darien just looked away before he felt Rowena pick at his hair. He smiled up at the raven, still worried. And for some reason, the raven seemed to know it. For she nudged his chin with her beak as if to say 'it will be all right'.


	21. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20.**

Over the next few days, Darien went to his classes with his two friends, saying not one word about what Slytherin had revealed to him and his friends. Of course, they had talked about it but only to each other. Never with one of the grown ups or the Aurors. Eventually, they finally recieved a lightstone from Remus. The teachers had finally finished examining the stones and they decided to give a lightstone to Darien to wear. Lionel and Rex eventually wanted one too, just in case. So with a laugh, Remus gave them one. They wore their lightstones under their robes and would only have them out in the dark. Dumbledore had even had the Aurors wear some. It was amazing on how many Lightstones they had found in the underground cave. With the ones that weren't worn, they were placed around the castle where it was the darkest. They did not want any room that was dark go unlit.

However, as the early spring started to arrive and classes went on, Darien was finding himself thinking about Draco again. He still hadn't heard any word from his mother about him. He really hoped that the Esuna Mithras spell had worked. He didn't think he could bear the idea of having Draco Malfoy's spirit wandering the world all alone trying to find his body.  
It made Darien just wonder, how in the world would a spirit know where to find its body anyway? He was about to find out.

It was the beginning of February and the castle was more alive than ever. There had not been anymore attacks through the several weeks. No signs of Umbra or Dementors on the grounds. Darien was getting better along with his new werewolf traits. Remus was making sure he was taking the Wolfsbane potion and they went out to the shack together, keeping only each other company. Even Lionel and Sam were being more civil to each other. Actually they weren't speaking to each other at all so it made it better between them. They weren't fighting anymore because they weren't speaking to one another.  
It was then they were all about to get a nice surprise, and horrible one.

Darien, Lionel and Rex were making their way to the Great Hall when they heard someone shouting. Frowning, they picked up their pace and found Professor Dumbledore speaking to a young woman about Harry and Ron's age.

She was quite pretty, yet the look on her face didn't make her that way. She had shoulder length black hair pulled up into an elegant bun and she was wearing a silky deep red dress robes and a black fur cloak. And she looked very angry.  
Whitman and his two thugs were there too, standing off to the side, though Parkinson looked very smug about something. Darien then realized that this woman had to be his mother. He remembered how he had said that Ms. Parkinson would be paying a visit to Hogwarts about what had happened to her son with Lionel.

"This is an outrage, Dumbledore! I will not allow some little cretin to attack my son and get away with it! I want some action!" The woman screeched.

"Ms. Parkinson, action has already taken place. The young man your son had fought with had already had his detention." Dumbledore said calmly.

Ms. Parkinson slapped her leather gloves against her hand as her face reddened with rage. "I don't think detention will do with such a violent and destructive little brat! I want to see him expelled from this school!" She snapped. Darien and Rex looked at the wide eyed Lionel. They both were sure they were feeling what he was feeling. Anger and fear. They couldn't believe this woman's demands.

"Parkinson, you can't expell a student who had one little fight with your kid, all right?" Ron said folding his arms. The woman shot him a dirty look. "You shut up, you blood traitor!" She snapped at him. Ron and Harry both glared at the woman while Dumbledore rose a hand. "Now, now. Let's not have that kind of talk. As our dear friend, Mr. Weasley just said, we don't expell students because a fight." He said. Ms. Parkinson glared at him next, looking even more angry. "Well you should! It is such an outrage! What if it was another student that the little Nazi child could have nearly beaten to death?!"

There was an outburst by a few of the teachers, while Darien glanced over at Lionel, who was looking hurt and angry again. He gently touched his friend's shoulder, shaking his head. "Don't listen to that wench, Lionel. She doesn't know you. She can't." He told him.

"Why don't you just shut up, Pansy, since you can't really say anything nice? For god's sake, that little Nazi child you are talking about is only 11 years old and he does not deserve to be talked about like that." Someone said coolly.

Everyone turned around to see who had said that. Some looking very surprised. Even Darien stiffened when he heard that voice. He knew it well. For he had talked to the owner several times. The owner of the voice was hidden from his view though. The man was standing in a doorway with Hermione, yet he couldn't be seen from where Darien was standing. So the young Gryffindor hurried down the stairs into the hall to see the owner better. Lionel and Rex both followed before halting right by Darien's sides when they saw the man. A smile slowly curled on Darien's face as he just looked at the white blonde haired man standing next to his mother. It was Draco Malfoy. He truly had returned.  
Ms. Parkinson looked extremely stunned to see him as did the teachers. Dumbledore, however, was smiling before he stepped over, motioning for Draco to step closer. The young man only glanced at him before walking forward. He was walking on a limp though. It was clear he wasn't too stable on his legs just yet. After all, he had been in a coma for 12 years.

"D-Draco?! You're...you're alive?!" Ms. Parkinson gasped.

Draco lazily looked at her through narrowed eyes before he tossed his long bangs out of his icy blue eyes. "Apparently so, since I am standing here." He slowly shook his head. "Pansy, what the hell are you doing here? So what if some kid broke your kid's nose? Sure, you're angry but it's not like Madam Pomfrey couldn't fix the little snot's nose, right?"

Pansy Parkinson narrowed her eyes as she lift her head higher. "You haven't changed that much, have you, Draco? You are still that blood traitor from years ago." She said coldly.

Draco rolled his eyes before he turned away from her. "Bite me."

That made some of the Aurors snort with laughter, as did some of the students watching the fray. Pansy Parkinson just narrowed her eyes before she looked at Dumbledore. "I will be writing to the School Governors about this, Dumbledore. Mark my words. You have not heard the last of this!" She turned and stormed out of the school.

Everyone only smiled before they looked at Draco. "Now, this is a big surprise! I can't believe you're back!" Ron said with a grin.

Draco only glanced at him before shaking his head. "Yeah, well surprises aren't always so nice." He said with a shrug. Hermione shook her head as she stepped closer. "He wasn't exactly in a good mood when he woke up a few week ago." She told everyone. "He doesn't remember what happened to him. So he wasn't exactly thrilled to find out that he wasn't 16 years old anymore."

Draco only nodded as he looked around at all the teachers. "Hermione's already told me what she could but I still don't get it. I lost my soul to a Dementor. So how in the hell did I get it back?"

Darien felt his face drain a little when he heard the way Draco said that. It sounded like he wasn't happy to be back at all. But why not? He had his soul back. Wasn't that good enough? He saw a few eyes turn towards him once Draco had asked his question and he immediately looked away. He only looked over again to see what was going to happen next and it was at that second he noticed that even Draco was looking at him.

"Mr. Malfoy, why don't we go to my office and we can talk about your experiences there. I will inform you of everything that has happened to you." Dumbledore said, motioning for him to follow him.  
Draco Malfoy looked back at him before following him up the stairs, past Darien and his two friends. His icy blue eyes met Darien's for a brief second, yet he looked confused about something. It looked like he was trying to remember something, but he wasn't sure about it.

"Darien."

Darien looked over at his mother when she called him. She was smiling quite proudly at him. The other adults behind her were smiling too. Harry and Ron both gave him nods of approval. Remus wrapped his arm around his loving Swiftstar, smiling up at his oldest son. "Darien, I am so proud of you. So is your father." Hermione said smiling. Darien only shrugged. "He was my friend, mom. "I had to try and help him." He shook his head as he looked right at his parents. "He still doesn't remember me though. Doesn't he?"

Hermione and Remus looked at each other, both could sense the sadness in their son. With a deep sigh, Hermione shook her head. "I'm sorry, Darien. But no, he doesn't remember. The last thing he remembers is talking to me and Harry 12 years ago before he was blasted out the window. It's like you told us, Darien. He thinks he's still 16 years old." She said softly.

"He's a 16 year old boy in a man's body. We have to give him time to adjust to the change." Remus said with a faint smile. Darien nodded before he turned towards the Great Hall and went in with his friends.

Both Hermione and Remus watched as he go before looking at one another again. "He's disappointed." She whispered. Remus nodded slowly. "He'll get over it, Swift. He can still be friends with Draco. They both just need time." He said. Harry and Ron both stepped closer watching Darien through the doorways. "We will try very hard to help Draco remember. Even though it's hopless." The dark haired Auror said. Ron nodded in agreement.

Remus slowly nodded before he looked at them. "Ron, you looked into the case about Severus, didn't you? What did you find out?"

"Nothing too out of the ordinary. It wasn't a creature attack at all. Someone stabbed him in the back." Ron shook his head. "Someone nearly killed him for some reason. We hope he wakes up soon so he can tell us who attacked him. That is..." He paused before Harry shook his head. "If he can." His friend finished for him.

* * *

Later in the day, Darien was sitting up in the Owlery with Rowena, looking out at the melting snow. He was thinking about everything that was happening to him, and also wondering what happened to Slytherin because after he showed Darien and his two friends what was in his journal, he hadn't showed up once. Darien hoped that the ghost was okay about what he relearned. He couldn't help but look at the gargoyles on the castle walls.

Surely none of these gargoyles were any of the ones that killed Slytherin, were they?

He was a little startled when one turned its head a little in his direction, as if it could sense his eyes. It didn't move again. Darien sighed as he began to run his fingers down Rowena's back. "Rowena, why can't they just leave me alone? I'm just a boy, a kid. What's so special about me?" He whispered to her. The raven gave a low caw as she bumped his head with her beak, making him smile. "I know, I know. You won't let them hurt me." He went silent for a while.

"I used come sit up here by myself too."

Darien jumped a little as he turned around sharply, his hand already had his wand out. He stopped when he saw that it was just Draco Malfoy. He could hear Rowena complaining a little when he jerked making her lose her balance on his arm a little. She managed to stay on though.

"The owls are a peaceful lot when they want to be." Draco said as he slowly walked in, looking around at the hundreds of owls. He had his hands in his pockets as he walked over the crud under his feet. He then looked back into Darien's multicolored eyes. They were both quiet for a long time before Draco faintly smiled at him. "Your mother told me what you did for me. She also told me that you used to talk to me while I was in my coma."

Darien only looked away, feeling his face flush. He didn't know what to say about it. What could he say? Draco didn't remember him. "I liked talking to you. You could listen without complaining."

That made Draco laughed softly as he tilted his head upwards to look at the owls again. "That's a real good excuse." He said. He looked back at the smile on Darien's face. He stepped a little closer. "So, you're responcible for my return. You helped free my soul from that Dementor."

Again, Darien looked away, remembering the way he had said it before in the Great Hall. "You didn't sound happy in the Great Hall, when you came back." He said. Draco now looked away before smiling down at him. "No, I didn't. But I am." He smiled even more when Darien looked up at him. "I'm very happy to be back and alive, Darien. It's just...before this all happened I was 16 years old. A boy who was caught up in something big. Your mother told you all about it, didn't she?"

Darien nodded. "Yeah. She said that you made her think that you were on Voldemort's side just help her and Harry."

Draco smiled as he tilted his head to the side. "That's right. I betrayed Voldemort to help the people I once hated. I also betrayed my own father. He wanted me to be like him, a Death Eater. A follower of the Dark Lord. But I didn't want to. And then I lose my soul to a Dementor and then wake up as this." He said looking himself over.

"It's mental, I know." Darien said, smiling when Draco laughed.

"Yes, it is." Draco said, still chuckling. "I don't know what you did, Darien, but I thank you greatly. If you hadn't done what you did, I would be dead. It was only a matter of time before my body decided to shut down. Without a soul, the body can't really survive. I guess I was strong enough to keep living. But then again," He paused smiling at Darien. "You were helping me."

Darien gave him a confused look. "Me? But didn't do anything. It was the nurse who..." He saying.

Draco shook his head as he placed his hand on Darien's shoulder. "No. The nurse may have been keeping my body healthy but it was you kept me spiritially." He faintly smiled still seeing the confused look on Darien's face. "I may not remember very much, Darien. But I do remember a dream I had during my coma. I dreamed of something strange. I remember seeing you in the dream. That's why I was staring at you in the Great Hall. But I also remembering hearing a voice. I remember someone once said that they would never give up on me, no matter what."

Darien grinned. "That was me! You actually heard me!"

"Did you also say something about a kid giving you an early grave? Because I remember someone said that." Draco said with a confused frown.

Darien burst out with laughter and shook his head. "No. That was mom. She says that about me all the time. She says it because I always manage to get into trouble or I say the wildest things. Just like how she used to do with Harry and Ron." He said. Draco chuckled before he looked at the raven. "That yours?"

"Yeah. This is Rowena. She's been protecting me." Darien said stroking the raven's back.

Draco frowned a little as if he was remembering something. "From the Umbra, right?" He asked. Darien looked up at him in curiousity. "Yeah. Did mom and dad tell you?" He asked. Draco shook his head. "No. Dumbledore did. He told me what was going on here at the castle. And I told him what I knew about the Umbra." He said. Darien looked at him with surprise. "You know about it?!"

"Yes. I do. And I'm wishing that didn't." Draco answered.

Darien bumped his arm a little to let Rowen climb off, which she did before he stood up quickly facing Draco. "Draco, what do you know that might be able to help me? Maybe it could." He said sounding a little anxious to know.

The white blonded haired wizard only frowned as he fought to remember. "Well, I know that it's very dangerous. It's a darkness demon that has been around for hundreds of years. Maybe thousands. It's one of the oldest demons in our world." He frowned even more. "I've seen it once or twice."

"You have?! Where? How?" Darien asked with surprise.

Draco gave him a faint smile before trying to remember again. "It was years ago. Many years. In my second year, I believe. Right after Hermione, your mother had been attacked by the Baskilisk. I was doing some research on the Chamber of Secrets. Trying to figure something out. I found this book in the library, the forbidden section, and it said something about it."

Rowena began to caw loudly and flapping her wings. It was like she was trying to tell them something. Darien seemed to know. It had to be about the book that Draco read. "Draco, can you remember anything about the book? Could you show me it? It might be able to tell me how to get rid of the Umbra!" He said. Draco just stared at him before smiling. "Yeah. I remember everything about the book and I can show it to you. Come on." He said turning away from him. Darien held out his arm and the raven flew to him. Then he hurried after Draco.

As the two hurried down to the library, they ran into Lionel and Rex along the way. Apparently they had been looking for Darien. Darien quickly explained to them what they were doing as the two fellow Gryffindors followed them.

"So, you really think that this book might be able to tell us more about the Umbra?" Rex asked as he practically jogged after the taller three.

Darien glanced back at him before looking at the raven flying above them. "When Draco mentioned the book, Rowena kind of went a little crazy. I know it sounds funny guys but I really think she knows about the Umbra. Slytherin said that they're very smart birds." He said. Draco slowly down a little as they approached the library before he nodded to the young werewolf. "They are smart. No one really knows how smart but they really are. I believe that's why the raven is the mascot for the Ravenclaw house." He said. Darien nodded as he held up his arm for the raven to land on it.

The four slowly walked into the library so that they wouldn't attract attention from Madam Pince, who didn't even seem to notice them at all. She was too busy lecturing a few students for using books as target practice with their wands.

Draco looked around before nodding towards the forbidden section. "You guys go take a seat in the farthest corner of the library while I look for that book. Students are not allowed in the forbidden section." He told them.

Darien, Lionel and Rex nodded as they left Draco and went over to a table. All three glancing around at the other occupants of the library. There was quite a few students they didn't even know. But their eyes were on three very annoyed looking Slytherins, who were quietly complaining to one another. Lionel growled at the sight of Whitman and his two goons but Darien held fast to his arm. "Don't even think about it, Lionel. Like you really need to be in trouble again because of those three." He said. Lionel nodded, still glaring at the three Slytherin students. Darien and his two friends sat down and waited for Draco to return, still looking around.

"Hey, have you been thinking about what we saw in the journal?" Rex asked.

Darien nodded along with Lionel. "Yeah. I've been thinking about it. It kind of makes me scared of the gargoyles of Hogwarts now." The blonde said. Darien snorted before agreeing with him. "No kidding. Slytherin once told me that the gargoyles were all watching me for the Umbra. And to think about it even more, one of them just might be the demon."

Rex shuddered as he did think about it. "Man, I don't think I ever want to go near another gargoyle again." He said. His two friends laughed, eventually making him laugh.

"Well, well, well. Look what we have here, boys."

Immediately the three Gryffindors's moods fell as they turned around and glared at Whitman and his two friends. "Oh great. It's Wimpy Whitman. What do you want?" Lionel growled.

Whitman sneered at him. "We can be in the library all we want too, Nazi. It's not just for stupid Germans like you." He said. Lionel almost shot to his feet to get at Whitman but a hand immediately fell onto his shoulder, keeping him from standing up. All three Gryffindors looked up to see the serious look on Draco's face. Under his armpit, he was carrying a very large and worn book. Darien felt his excitement flare up a little. It must have been the book that would tell them about the Umbra. He didn't say anything though. Because the look on Draco's face wasn't really a pleasant one.

"Do we have a problem here?" Draco asked coolly.

All three Slytherins all looked at him with confusion and uneasiness but the Whitman sneered at him. "No. We're just having a friendly conversation with them." He said, lifting his head higher. It more than likely he thought that Draco would just give him a warning and walk away like one of the Aurors would. But Draco stood right where he was.

"It sure sounded like a friendly conversation." Draco said sarcastically. "If I ever hear you call Lionel a Nazi again, you better be running for you life, kiddo. Because I'll turn you into a slug, got that? Since you want to act like one, you'll become one." He then turned his icy eyes onto Parkinson. "And, you, tell your mother to stay the hell away from here. She causes nothing but trouble for this school."

"How dare you! I should report you to the Headmaster or...or the Minister of Magic!" Whitman said angrily.

Darien, Lionel and Rex smirked as they watched how Whitman's temper was flaring because of Draco. They were finding this hilarious. Draco, however, smirked the very same smirk he used when he was younger. It was the same smirk he always used against Harry Potter and his friends. "Go right ahead. See if I care. They won't do anything but give me a lecture. And I've had a lot of those in my life. Now bugger off. We're busy here."

Whitman glared up at Draco. "Who are you to tell us what to do?!"

Draco's smirk grew wider as he gave the three Slytherins a vampire like smile. "Draco Malfoy. And may I learn your name?"

Darien and his two friends watched as Ian Whitman's face slowly drained of color. It was not doubt that he knew that name very well. But how did he know it? Maybe he knew it from Hermione's books or maybe...he had heard it from his own father. "You're...Dr-Draco Malfoy? That's impossible. My father said that Draco Malfoy was dead."

"Oh really? What's your father's name then?" Draco asked. "Maybe I'd know him."

Whitman shook his head. He wasn't going to say. So Darien decided to tell him what their names were. "His name's Ian Whitman, Draco. And his father is Taurine Whitman. He's a Death Eater."

The look Whitman gave him was not pleasant at all. He was giving the young werewolf the most iciest look he could manage. There was definitely extreme loathing in that look.

Draco however, chuckled as he tossed his white bangs out of his eyes. "Ah. A Whitman, huh? And not just any Whitman, Taurine's kid."

"Did you know him, Draco?" Lionel asked with a smirk.

Draco nodded with a smirk. "Yeah. I knew him all right. Taurine Whitman used to follow my father around, treating him like some kind of god. That is until he screwed up a mission for Voldemort." The three Slytherins flinched at the sound of the Dark Lord's name. "He was suppose to kill a bunch of enemies of Voldemort's, but he couldn't. He killed a valuable Death Eater instead. That put him on Voldemort's shit list. He had to hide for a while until the Dark Lord's temper went down." Draco then shook his head as he set the book down on the table. "Do yourself a favor, Ian. Don't follow your father's footsteps. He's a Death Eater and a wanted murderer. I see that you're a Slytherin and I respect that. I like other Slytherins. But I don't like dark wizards. Dark wizards only get theirselves in trouble. Now go do your homework or something." He told him.  
Whitman just glared at him before he turned and stormed away. Parkinson and Ewart just stared at Draco before they turned and followed their leader. Draco then looked at Lionel. "Ya all right, Lion?"

Lionel faintly smiled at him. "Yeah. Thanks, Malfoy. They won't be bothering us for a while."

Draco shook his head as he pulled out a chair and sat down between him and Darien. "They're Slytherins. They always come back for more. I'm a Slytherin too so I would know." He then turned his attention to the book before them. "It took me a while to try and find this thing but it was right where I left it when I last saw this thing."

Darien looked at the large book's cover. The writing on it was faded away so he couldn't see what the title was. He frowned as he just stared at the book. "Draco, what is it?" He asked.

Draco glanced at him before he opened the cover to the first page. The pages were quite ancient and very delicate looking so he was being very careful with handling them. On the page was written; **Ancient Mythology of Daimons**. It didn't say who wrote it though.

"Daimons? What's that?" Rex asked.

Darien shook his head. "It's another word for demons." he then looked at Draco. "Draco, how old is this book?"

Draco just shook his head as he carefully began flipping the pages, searching for something. "It's very old, Darien. I think one of the oldest books in this entire library. I think it was written in the 1200's by a wizard who had studied demons his entire life. Now a days they call that kind of study Demonology. I can't remember his name though. The name was never really written in this book. It's amazing that this book has lasted so long." He informed the young Gryffindors.

"Yeah, no kidding there. If it's that old." Lionel said putting his feet up on the table only to get them knocked off again by Draco. "Tables aren't for feet, Lionel. Besides, if Madam Pince catches you with your feet on them, she'd have a cow." The platinum haired wizard warned. Lionel only pulled a face before leaning back in his chair with his arms folded behind his head.

Darien was looking at the book with interst as he watched Draco flip the ancient pages. "Does this book really have something on the Umbra?"

"Yeah. It does have something. This is an ancient book on demons and hardly ever used because Hogwarts didn't really have problems with demons before until now. Ah ha! Here we are!" Draco said as he found a page with a colored corner.

Darien frowned at Draco. "Did you mark in this book?"

Draco smirked at him with carelessness. "Yeah. So what? I was young and I didn't care too much about books only that they gave me knowledge of things. Anyway stop complaining. You're about to find out more about the Umbra demon." Darien didn't say anything after that.

The four of them just looked at the book; the raven just standing on the back of Darien's chair. She cawed a few times before going quiet. There was an ancient drawing of a demon, the Umbra. The ink was quite faded out but they still could see it.

"What does it say?" Lionel asked, his eyes squinting at the tiny words scrawled on the pages.

Draco bent a little closer to the pages, frowning as he tried to read. "It's been a while since I last read this book but I remember a little of what it says. It says,

**Daimon of Darkness-umbra; inis. (fog, mist, darkness)**

**Transf., (mental darkness, calamity and gloom)**

**Umbra; demon of darkness; a demon who dwells in**

**shadows of the world, magic and muggle. An ancient evil**

**that has lived for hundreds of years, since the Dark Wars.**

**During the Dark Ages, before the Umbra became a daimon,**

**it was a dark sorcerer; an advocate of Beliar De Diablo; a**

**Warlock, who had fallen during the Dark Ages. After his**

**master's fall, Umbra was exiled from the wizarding world**

**like many of his brethren; also followers of De Diablo. The**

**exciled advocates were stripped of their magical inheritance**

**using a very anciet magic; _Negatus Mysterium._**

Draco stopped when he heard all three young Gryffindors gasp. He gave them all questioning looks as they just looked at one another with wide eyes. "What? What's wrong?" He asked. Darien shook his head quickly before he waved for Draco to continue. "Later! Does it say anything about that spell?" He asked. Draco just gave him a queer look before looking down at the book again. After a minute, he shook his head. "It doesn't say anything about the Negatus Mysterium. Just more information about Umbra. Why are you all getting freaky about that spell?"

"Never mind, Draco. We'll tell you after you're done. What else does it say?" Darien asked. Draco just eyed him for a minute before he went on reading the info it was saying.

**"Once stripped of magic, Umbra travelled in the darkness of the**

**world, hiding from others that hunted him. He swore revenge on**

**those who exciled him; which lead him into converting to a daimon.**

**Information of how he had done it is a mystery. It was said that he**

**found himself captured by dark creatures of the night and later he**

**became their leader. He was not seen for many, many years until**

**he revealed himself as a daimon to non-magic folk. The Umbra**

**daimon revealed that he had the dark powers of the hours of**

**darkness. It could travel as a maisma; cloud of darkness; or a**

**night's mist. It also had the powers of transformation; turning into**

**many monsters, people, and dark animals of the night.**

**However, though it is dangerous, magical folk had learned that**

**it could not stand the light of day. Light of any sort burned its skin.**

"Well, looks like we found its weakness." Draco said with a shrug. Darien, Rex and Lionel didn't say anything. They had already figured out what the Umbra's weakness had been. Unfortunately, it always managed to escape in time before it could be destroyed.

**"Centuries passed during the daimon's wraith upon the world,**

**and yet, no one could assume how to stop it. It soon was given**

**a name; The Bringer of Gloom and Calamity because of its**

**cruelty on mankind. It was then the great wizard, Merlin, fought the**

**daimon, banishing its stolen powers, leaving the Umbra daimon powerless. It was locked **

**away in a pit of darkness; a tomb of endless ****black; banished from the world. No persons **

**had seen it ever again."**

All three Gryffindors looked at one another with confusion. They were all wondering the same thing. If the Umbra had been locked away, how did it get out again? Draco seemed to read their minds because he flipped a few more pages. "It doesn't really end there. There's another entry about the demon of darkness. Only this time it's called Caligo."

That was like a punch in the gut for Darien. His mind immediately ran to the Divination Professor when he heard that name. "Wh-what does it say?"

Draco shook his head. "It says here that Caligo is a gargoyle, rumored to be a darkness demon. Though it's only rumors. It doesn't say very much about it." He then pulled out another book from within his cloak. "However, I have checked up on gargoyles before. This book I've carried a few times." The book was very small, pocket sized so it was easy to carry. "It comes from the library of my own house." Darien just stared as Draco opened it, searching for the entry. "The gargoyle called Caligo was the leader of a large clan called the Darkwyngs. The clan of gargoyles were quite the band in the middle ages. Some were mischievous while others were quite docile and passive. Because of the differences, they split into different clans. While the Darkwyngs were the wild and mischievous group, the other clan were the quiet ones. They eventually called theirselves the Amity clan, which later split again because the numbers grew too great." Draco told the three students. "The thing is about gargoyles, even though they had different clans, they were still all family. There were strong ties between each clan. That can be a problem."

"Why? Why is that a problem." Lionel asked, still looking at him.

Draco shook his head as he stared at the book. "Because if the Umbra is really the gargoyle, Caligo, he's going to be very hard to get to. If he calls on the gargoyles for help, we are in trouble. If a gargoyle is in trouble, it can call on its clans, or any close by gargoyle, and they will come to its brethren's protection."

Darien gave a sharp breath as he remember something. He remembered what Slytherin had said about the gargoyles of Hogwarts.

_"Every gargoyle you see in this castle is connected to that one. Except one. The one who guards the Headmaster's quarters and office. Every gargoyle you see in the halls, watch their eyes. They watch you like a hawk. Mainly you."_

"Darien? Darien, what's wrong?" Rex's voice broke into Darien's thoughts. Darien shook his head as he looked at his friends with wide eyes. "The gargoyles! They're working with the Umbra!"

Draco squinted his eyes. "What?"

"The gargoyles in the castle and on the roof! They're with the Umbra! I remember in Slytherin's Hogwarts, A history book! There was a gargoyle that Slytherin was always talking to when he wasn't around the other founders!" Darien said speedily. He then looked at Lionel and Rex. "Remember in the journal?! Slytherin showed us when he spoke to the gargoyle! That was Caligo the gargoyle!"  
Rex and Lionel both gasped as they remembered. "Hey! The Divination teacher! His name is Caligo, isn't it?!" The blonde exclaimed. Darien's eyes lit up just thinking about it.

However, Draco quickly rose a hand. "Hey, hey, hey! Now you're jumping to conclusions." He said quickly. All three Gryffindors looked at him. "But..." Darien started.

"Darien, I don't know anything about this new Divination teacher but before you start pointing fingers, I better warn you now. The name Caligo is very common in the magical world. There are quite a few names that deals with Caligo. There is Caligo DeVanquie, a french wizard who into magical artistry. There's also the Greenwhich Potion's master, Caligo Conners. There are quite a lot of Caligos in the world. And pointing fingers at the Divination Professor is not going to help at all. Isn't he new to Hogwarts this year?"

All three nodded. "Yeah. But..." Rex started to say.

"Just to let you know there is a wizard called Alexander Caligo, who is quite the fortune teller. He has a great eye of the Divination and he could be this Professor." Draco interupted. He shook his head. "What do you know about the Divination Professor? What's his full name?"

Darien slowly shook his head. "We don't know. We've never actually heard it. I don't think even dad knows his full name. Everyone just knows him as Professor Caligo." He said. Draco slowly shook his head before closing the book. "Well, then we have find out. Surely Dumbledore would know his name." He said standing up.  
The three Gryffindors nodded as they stood up. They all turned to leave the library only to freeze.

Standing right in front of them, looking very forbidding, was Professor Caligo. He was giving them all a very hard look and it was very clear that he had overheard what they all just said. Darien stiffened at the sight of the Professor and so did his two friends. However, Draco looked confused. He had yet to meet this man and the look he was getting, he knew something was up.

"Pro-Professor C-Caligo!" Darien stammered. That made even Draco tense up to learn who this man was. Professor Caligo turned his eyes onto the young student, squinting a little. He didn't look happy one bit.

"How...how are you?" Darien asked, wincing a little because his voice faultered.

The Divination Professor lift his head a little higher, his eyes squinting in dislike. "I was doing very well minutes ago, Young Lupin, before I just heard your suspicions. I must say, I am very disappointed that you do not trust me. A Hogwarts teacher." He slowly shook his head, his chin startig to dig into his own neck. "I should have seen this coming in my crystal ball. I should have known that you were going to distrust me."

Darien swallowed hard. He didn't like the way the Professor said that. Draco, however, tucked the books under his arm, his own eyes narrowing. "What are you doing listening to our conversation anyway? That's snooping you know?" He ignored the icy look the Divination teacher gave him. "And stop looking at me like that."

"Pro-Professor, we're not accusing you of anything. It's just..." Lionel was saying.

"Do not lie, Young Boyd. I have heard what you said while searching for few divination books to read. Plus I was coming to speak to Young Darien about something." Professor Caligo said as he turned his eyes back onto Darien. Darien immediately knew what he was going to talk to him about. The divination lessons. He immediately felt guilt building up. But then Professor Caligo frowned even deeper. "I know that you told your friend, Darien, about the lessons. You honestly thought you could tell him without me finding about it? I am a Divination Professor."

The young Gryffindor winced. "Professor, I didn't mean..."

"It is quite all right, Young Lupin." The Professor interrupted. "That was the reason why I was coming to speak to you. I have decided not to teach you early Divination lessons. I'm afraid the Headmaster had found out through Professor Severus Snape, who had taken the liberty of using Occulemency on me one night. I have told you that it was risky teaching you without the permission of the Headmaster or your parents. I am not allowed to teach you longer."

For some reason, Darien was feeling something worst. Just learning that he would not be learning Divination now was feeling like someone was stabbing him in the chest. He could almost feel a terrible headache starting to build up in his mind and it was feeling like someone was hitting him over the head or stabbing him with pins and needles. He winced a little while the Professor was speaking to him, before touching his temple.

That cut the Professor off as he frowned with concern. "Young Lupin?" He asked before stepping forward. "Darien, what's wrong?"

Draco, Lionel and Rex looked over at the young werewolf before looking even more concerned. Darien, however, just rubbed his right temple as the headache grew worst. It soon became a stabbing pain making him cry out and fall to his knees. "Darien!" Draco cried out as he dropped the books and sank down beside him. Even Professor Caligo rushed forward and sank down to one knee, grabbed his shoulder.

"Argh!" Darien just cried out as the pain inside his head grew worst. It was excruciating and he could feel nothing but the pain in his head. "Make it stop! It hurts!" He found himself crying out as he dropped his bookbag and grabbed his head with both hands.

"Darien, what's wrong?!" Draco cried out.

Professor Caligo gritted his teeth, still looking concerned before he placed his two fingers on Darien's forehead, his eyes snapping shut. He threw his head back, hissing a little as if he felt the same pain Darien was, yet he never cried out as Darien was doing.

Inside Darien's mind, he was seeing flashes of darkness and could hear evil laughter. He could feel something drilling into his own mind, stabbing the insides and searching through each memories he had. It was the worst thing he ever felt. Even worst during the full moon nights. He suddenly felt something warm falling over him, almost like the hot rays of the sun touching his skin.

_"Hold on, Young Lupin! I'll get him out of your mind!" _He heard Professor Caligo's voice inside his head.

Darien just cried out again as he felt another stab inside his head. But this time, it was weaker. He could almost feel someone battling inside his own mind, pulling whatever it was that was attacking him out. Soon, after only minutes, the pain vanished leaving Darien feeling very weak and sore. He felt like he had a terrible fever. His brow was sweating terribly and his body was shaking. He was even having a hard time breathing.

"Darien, are you all right?" He heard Draco ask

"It's all right now, Darien." Professor Caligo said as he held onto Darien's shoulder. "It is gone."

Darien rubbed his head as if he still could a feel a headache before he looked at the Divination Professor. "Professor, what happened? What was that?" He asked. He felt himself being lifted up to his feet. He staggered a little but Draco had a firm grip on him.

Professor Caligo was rubbing his own head, wincing quite a bit. "It was the Umbra, my young friend. He was using his own Divination powers against you. He must be here." he said looking around sharply. Draco had his wand out the second the Professor said that, his icy blue eyes searching the library. Even Lionel and Rex had their wands out. Darien just sighed wearily. "Why can't he just leave me alone? I wanted to have a normal school year, not abnormal."

Draco smirked at that idea. "To have a normal school year in Hogwarts? Exactly what is normal here?"

Lionel and Rex sniggered while Darien just looked around the ceiling. He jumped a little when he heard Rowena caw and fly over to his shoulder. He glanced at her, seeing her fierce blue eyes on the Divination Professor. Before Darien could say anything or even look at the Professor, he turned when he heard someone hurrying over.

"Darien!"

Everyone looked over to see Remus, Sirius and Harry hurrying over to the group. They were all looking concerned. "Darien, we heard you cry out. What happened?!" Remus asked as he rushed over to Darien's side and place his hands on his shoulders. Draco stepped back to let them have room. Darien just shook his head. "I'm okay now, dad. Professor Caligo helped me." He said. Remus looked over at the Divination Professor before he looked at Draco, who nodded. "I don't know what happened, Professor, but whatever it was, Professor Caligo got rid of it." The platinum haired wizard said.

Remus let out a deep sigh before he shook his head, straightening. His hands still on Darien's shoulders. "Darien, I've had enough of this. I can't stop worrying about you because of this creature. You're in danger while here at Hogwarts." He said with a frown.

"Dad, what are you talking about?" Darien asked uneasily.

Remus just looked into his son's eyes with a gloomy expression. "Darien, you're not going to stop your studies. I promise you that. But I want you to go home and stay there until we find this monster and stop him." He saw the pained expression on Darien's face and he nodded. "Yes, Darien. I'm sending you home, away from Hogwarts."


	22. Chapter 21

**Author's Note: Thanks for your reviews. I know it's getting a little tough for Darien, but it's only going to get better and worst. We'll just have to see where it goes. But for now, please read and review.

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**Chapter 21.**

The feeling Darien was feeling now was the worst thing he felt. It was a different kind of pain. It wasn't like what he felt when the Umbra tried to possess him or what he felt when it attacked his mind. It was something else. Heartbreak, maybe. He was being sent away from the place he loved the most other than his own house. Being chased out, for what reason? Wasn't Hogwarts the safest place in the world? Apparently not anymore. That was why his parents were sending him home. For his own safety. But still, he wasn't happy.

As soon as Darien returned to the Gryffindor House, he went up to his room and sat on his bed. His eyes staring out at the spring evening, glistening with tears. He didn't want to leave but he had no choice. He didn't want to leave Hogwarts, his second home. He didn't want to leave his friends. Lionel and Rex. Even Sam and Leoni. They were his friends.

"Darien?"

Darien tilted his head to the side, catching sight of Lionel and Rex standing there. He watched them for a few seconds before looking away again. His eyes looked out the window, at the melting snow. But he still said nothing.

"Darien, are you all right?" The little Gryffindor asked, stepping closer with Lionel.

"How could you ask that? I'm leaving Hogwarts because of this stupid monster. I'm leaving everyone behind just to be safe, when you guys are in danger as much as I am." Darien almost whispered. "The Umbra will kill you once I'm gone. I know he will. He will hurt everyone here until I come back and let him take me."

Lionel and Rex looked at one another before they went over and sat beside Darien. "Darien, no matter what happens, nothing will happen to us. I know that it won't." The blonde said, his hand on his friend's shoulder. "We'll miss you until you get back. But you got to be safe first." He said. Rex nodded with a faint smile. "Yeah, Dari. If you got hurt or killed because of the Umbra, we would miss you more and more. It would hurt a lot more. But when you're at home, you're safer and away from the Umbra." He told him. Darien's mouth curved up a little before he looked over at his two friends. "You guys will write to me, won't you?" He asked. Lionel and Rex both grinned. "Of course!" They both said at the same time.

"We have to keep you updated on what's going on around here." Lionel said with a grin.

Darien then slowly frowned as he looked back outside. "I wonder what happened to Slytherin. Where did he go? Why wasn't he there in the library, helping us?" He asked. Lionel and Rex only frowned. "Hey, why don't you tell us? You're the one who can see him." The littler Gryffindor said. The blonde only nodded. "I thought he was there. He's always around you."

"I know. But he wasn't there this time. He's been gone since after I found his skeleton in the Dark Forest." Darien frowned. "You don't think that's what helped him the most, do you? Finding his body is what made his spirit rest?"

Lionel shrugged as he fell back and laid out on Darien's bed. "How would I know? I don't know diddly squat about ghosts."

"I don't know. You said that Slytherin couldn't rest until he had his revenge on the Umbra, right?" Rex asked. Darien slowly nodded. "That's what he told me. I just don't get it. Maybe I shouldn't have found his body yet and he would still be here." He said thoughtfully. The raven didn't seem to agree. She just cawed several times before flapping her wings. All three Gryffindors looked at her with confusion.

"What's with Rowena?" Lionel asked as he watched the raven hopping up and down.

Darien shook his head as he held out his hand to the raven, who hopped up onto his wrist. Then he brought her closer to his face, looking into her blue eyes. "Rowena, what's wrong?" He asked. The raven just gently tapped his nose with her beak before she flew up into the air and towards the door. She flew out, leaving the confused three before flying back in, landing on the door. Darien just looked at his two friends. "What in the world? Rowena, what are you doing?" He asked the raven. The big black bird hopped up and down on the door, cawing at him.

"You think she wants us to follow her?" Rex asked.

Darien slowly nodded. "I think she does. Maybe she wants to show us something." He looked at the other two. "Should we follow her?"

Lionel and Rex both grinned then nodded. "Yeah! Let's find out where she wants to take us!" They both said at the same time. Darien nodded before he hurried over to his bed stand and grabbed his wand. Then he turned and hurried out the door just as the raven flew right out. Lionel and Rex hurrying after him.  
The three Gryffindors hurried down the hall, the raven flying above them. A few times she stopped to wait for them before she flew out the window and landed in a tree. Darien and his friends looked out at her before she turned and cawed flying off into the air. The Gryffindors just looked at one another. "What in the world?"

The raven soon returned when she realized that they weren't following her again. She called to them, flapping her wings. Darien shrugged before he went over to the doorway, stepping outside. His two friends followed after them. The three followed the raven across a small field towards a bunch of trees. "Where is she taking us? Are we even suppose to leave the grounds?" Lionel asked. Darien shook his head. "No. But we haven't left the grounds yet, Lionel. This is where the Quidditch teams sometimes practice when they're not practicing at the Quidditch field." He told them. Rex only nodded as he followed after his friend. The three kept walking until they heard someone call after them. They all turned around and Lionel groaned with disgust. It was Sam and Leoni.

"Oh my god. What are you two doing here?" Lionel groaned.

Sam and Leoni just gave him a dark look before looking at Darien. "That's what we're wondering. What are you guys doing out here? You're suppose to be inside." Lionel's twin sister said. Lionel folded his arms, giving them both a look. "It's none of your business. Go away!" He barked.

"You better watch it, Lionel, or I'm going to pound you!" Sam warned.

Darien quickly stepped in between them, holding up his hands. "You guys, don't fight each other." He then shook his head. "Sam, Leoni, not that I'm complaining about you two, but what are you doing out here?" He asked quietly.

Sam just shrugged, folding her arms. "Leoni and I saw you heading this way. So we just wanted to know what you were up to."

Darien, Lionel and Rex looked at each other before shaking their heads. "We're just taking a walk. That's all." The littlest Gryffindor said. Sam and Leoni both rose their eyebrows at them. "Uh-huh. Well, then you won't mind if we join you, now will you?" The dark haired Gryffindor girl asked. Lionel gritted his teeth while the other two looked uneasy. "Yes, we do mind! We want to be left alone and not with you annoying girls!" He growled at them.

Again the girls gave him a dark look before Leoni lift her chin higher and nodded. "All right. We get the message. We'll leave you alone." She said, surprising the Gryffindors.

"We will?" Sam asked.

"Why?" Lionel asked suspiciously, his eyes squinting at his twin.

Leoni only smirked as she turned away. "Because, we don't like annoying boys like you, Lionel." She said starting to walk away. She took a few steps before flipping her golden blonde hair over her shoulder, smirking at him. "Besides, I'm going to go tell Professor Lupin where you are."

"Why you little...!" Lionel exclaimed starting to charge at his sister.

Darien quickly grabbed his arm, holding him back. "All right! All right! You can come with us!" He said loudly. He earned confused looks from Lionel and Rex, while the girls smiled at him. "Thank you, Darien. I'm so glad that you agree with me." Leoni said smirking at her twin brother.

"Darien! Why are you letting her come?! They will know!" Lionel whispered, pulling Darien to the side away from the girls. Rex followed them, glancing at the two annoyed girls. "I don't really mind. But I thought you didn't want anyone to know about you." He said. Darien shook his head. "We're not telling them anything, guys. We're just following Rowena. It's not like they're going to tell them anything." He whispered right back. Lionel sighed with disgust before folding his arms. "All right. They can come." He groaned. Darien nodded before he looked at Sam and Leoni. "So, you coming?" He asked. The girls glanced at one another before they nodded and walked after the boys.

The six students walked into the trees, pausing a few times to see if they were off the boundaries yet. But Darien reassured them that they were still on the grounds. The other five were still a little uneasy but they followed him anyway.

Finally after traveling closer to the boundaries, through the thin woods, they came to a meadow of some sort. The grass under their feet were long, yet soft. There were bundles of wild flowers here and there. And in the middle of the small meadow, to their great surprise, was a large bungalow. It was painted white, yet a little run down. Ivy vines were growing up the walls, covered with all sorts of roses. It made the students just gasp at the sight of it. There was a small stream drifting across the front, surrounded by flowers. A small herd of unicorns were grazing off to the side, but when they heard the intruders, they lift their heads, looking ready to bolt.

"Oh, wow. This place is so beautiful." Sam said looking around.

Darien faintly smiled as he looked around at the scenery. He glanced up when the raven landed on a low branch, flapping her wings. "Rowena, what is this place?" He whispered before he started walking towards the small cabin. His friends followed after him. The raven flew ahead, landing on a window sill and looking in through broken glass.

The six students walked up to the front door and pulled it open. They all peered inside before they all stepped into the first room. The cabin wasn't very large at all. It was like any other cabin. There was a bed with golden rails pushed against the wall and few furniture here and there. A large wardrobe close the door. There was a large dark colored table on the other side of the room, with dead flowers in a vase. But above the large fireplace was a portrait. A portrait of a very beautiful woman with raven black hair and she wore a blue gown. She was the most beautiful woman that Darien had ever laid eyes on, besides his own mother. And he remembered her very well.

"Who is that?" Sam asked with a gasp.

Darien slowly shook his head as he just looked at the portrait. He slowly walked forward, staring up at the woman. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the woman's brilliant blue eyes. "...that's Rowena Ravenclaw." He whispered.

"Are you kidding? That's Rowena Ravenclaw?!" Rex gasped. "She's looks better in color than black ink! No wonder Slytherin is in love with her!"

Sam and Leoni gave him a confused look. "What? And how would you know that Salazar Slytherin was in love with Rowena Ravenclaw?" Leoni asked. Darien just shook his head as he turned to look at her. "It's a long story, Leoni. So don't even ask." He told her.

"Hey! Look at that!" Lionel said pointing.

Everyone looked to see what he was pointing at only to see that there was raven in the portrait, sitting on the back of the chair behind Rowena Ravenclaw. Darien's eyes slowly narrowed as he studied the bird before he gasped and stepped back. The raven looked exactly like Rowena the raven. It even had blue eyes like hers. He turned around and looked at the raven on the window sill, who cocked her head to the side, looking into Darien's own eyes. "Oh my god." He said. Lionel, Rex, Sam and Leoni just stared. "What?" They all asked.

Darien slowly shook his head as he walked over to Rowena, holding out his hand to her. The raven flew to him, landing on his hand. "Rowena...she looks just like that raven."

The others just stared before they looked at the portrait's raven then looked back at Rowena. One by one, their jaws fell. "Hey, you're right! That's freaky. You don't think..." Lionel was saying.

"I don't know, Lionel." Darien said looking back at the portrait. "She could just be the great, great, great grand-daughter of Rowena's raven. There's no way she could be the same. That would make her extremely old. And Rowena looks kind of younger than that raven." He said. The others slowly nodded. "You have a point. A thousand year old raven, right." Lionel said sarcastically.

"Why did she bring us here though?" Sam asked, looking around.

As if Rowena understood, she flew off of Darien's hand and over to the wardrobe. She cawed several times, jumping up and down. Darien nodded as he made his way over and opened it up.

Inside the wardrobe were several ancient gowns, seeming to be untouched by dust. It surprised all of the students to see them but Darien's eyes slowly looked down and he saw a leather bound book sitting on the floor of the wardrobe. Biting his lip, he bent down and picked it up. "Hey, check it out."

The others walked over and looked at the book in his hand. "What is that?" Lionel asked. Darien shook his head as he turned and went over to the table, followed by his friends. They all sat down in the chairs around the table, looking the book over.

Darien carefully opened the book and looked at the first page. It startled him to see the scrawled words. _The Journal of Rowena Ravenclaw. _

"Oh my god. It's her old diary. The one that went missing hundreds of years ago." Leoni said. The Gryffindors looked at her. "What?" Sam asked. Leoni slowly nodded as she reached out and took the book from Darien, who didn't protest. "There's a story in the Ravenclaw house, saying that Rowena Ravenclaw had a secret diary that was never found. It has all of her secrets and stuff." She said as he gently opened the book and looked through the delicate pages. "You think she's going to care if we go snooping though?"

The raven flew over onto the table and stomped her talon on the table as if demanding something. Everyone just stared at her.

"What is it, Rowena?" Darien asked her as if she was going to answer.

The raven hopped around the book before flapping her wings at the book, making the pages flip quickly to the last entry. She then tapped her beak against the book, as if demanding them to read. Darien nodded to Leoni. "Leoni, read it."

The blonde haired twin slowly nodded before she cleared her throat and looked at the beginning of the last entry."Okay. Here's what it says.  
_'Dear Journal, How can one say how true pain feels like? How can I explain what my heartbreak feels like in words? The only way I can describe it is that my heart feels like someone has taken a mallet to it, smashing it over and over. I can feel the million stabbings of heartbreak. I can not explain what happened so easily. What hast happened to my love, Salazar? Something hast happened to him, something horrific. He has left the school in a rage against me and our friends. I worry about him as I have before. He hast truly changed but why? How? Someone must have poisoned him with words. The night he disappeared, he fought against Godric, saying terrible things. He believes that Godric and I have laid to bed with one another. But it is not true.' _" Leoni paused as her face turned pink as did the others. But then she continued to read. " _'I do not understand why he would think such things. I love him with all my heart. He knows of this. I love him like bees loves my roses. I love him more than life itself. His love is the moon to me. It's light shall always shine down on me through the darkness. But why hast he turned his back on us? Why hast he thunk that his friends would turn against him. I swear on my life that I will live till the day we are reunited. I will do whatever I can to helping him. I must solve this mystery. No matter what.' _Oh, wow."

Sam heaved a deep sigh, a faint smile on her face. "Oh, that was so romantic. She must have really loved him if she says things like that." She said, her chin slowly falling into her hands.

Lionel gagged, pointing towards his mouth. "Ugh! Gag me till I die! That is so mushy."

Everyone snorted with laughter but Darien looked at the portrait. "I just don't get it though." He glanced at his friends when they looked at him. "Why did Rowena bring us here? Slytherins's not here." He then slapped a hand over his mouth, looking wide eyed at the girls. Lionel and Rex both winced as they looked at the confused looks on Sam's and Leoni's faces.

"What? Say that again?" The black haired Gryffindor girl said.

Darien kept his mouth covered as he shook his head. Lionel just groaned before shaking his head. "Darien, just tell them since you already flapped your lips." He said. Rex nodded. "It's no use trying to cover it up now." He told his friend. Darien slowly lowered his hand, a deep sigh escaping his throat before he looked at Sam and Leoni. Then he explained everything.

"So that's about it. Sam, Leoni, you can't tell anyone about me. Please." Darien said in a quiet beg. Sam and Leoni just stared at him with wide eyes. None of them spoke for a long time as they just stared at Darien. Finally a look of realization appeared on Sam's face. "So that's what you've been doing all year long. That's who you were talking about, Salazar Slytherin's ghost?"

Slowly, Darien nodded. "Yeah."

"And the dark creatures that have been attacking you and hurting the other students? They're all because of this Umbra creature?" Leoni asked, her eyebrow raising a little. All three Gryffindor boys nodded.

"Yeah. Rex and I saw Slytherin through the journal. He even told us who he was." Lionel told his sister.

Both Sam and Leoni looked at each other before they smiled at the three boys, the dark haired girl bobbed her head up and down. "Cool. That is so righteous."

Lionel snorted with laughter while Darien just seemed confused. "It is not cool! I have a stupid demon who's trying to possess me just because I'm a werewolf like my dad! And because I have some strange ability that seems really rare! I just want him to leave me alone! I just want to be normal.

"Well, that's not going to happen, Darien." Leoni said shaking her head. "With a gift like that, I'm surprised that Dumbledore isn't letting you do early Divination."

"Yeah, yeah. So what, Leoni? He's not letting Darien do it because his parents don't want him to do it." Lionel said with annoyance. Sam frowned, biting her lip as she had a deep thoughtful look on her face. "No, it's gotta be something else. Dumbledore must have a real reason why he won't let you. I know for a fact that what you're going through is something big. He probably just doesn't want you to do it because it might be dangerous. Way dangerous." She said. Darien glanced at his friends. "Not to sound rude or anything, but what would you know?" He asked as nicely as he could. Sam just shook her head. "Not much, Darien. I wish I could help you more on the subject. What did Professor Caligo tell you about this whole mindwalking thing?"

Darien shook his head as he tried to explain. "All he said was that it was a different form of Occlumency. He said that it was like, I don't know. It's like walking around in someone's own imaginary world. He says that people with the true inner eye can do it."

"That is true."

All five jumped when they heard someone speak up. Leoni dropped the secret journal of Rowena Ravenclaw, which fell onto the floor. Darien was already on his feet and had his wand out. His friends did the same, their eyes looking around with surprise and nervousness. However, all of them stopped on the smiling face of Rowena Ravenclaw. The one in the portrait of course.

"Oh my god! She's talking to us!" Lionel gasped.

The beautiful woman in portrait laughed, her oil painted hand touching her ruby colored lips as she shook her head. The raven that had been with her was gone, though. "Of course I talked to you. My portrait is just like the others. Though I don't really go anywhere from it." She said softly. Her voice was extremely soft and had a ringing tone to it. It was like if she wanted to, she could hypnotize any man just by speaking.

The five students just stood there, staring wide eyed at the moving portrait. It was a while before Darien slowly stepped closer to it, looking at the woman. "You...you're really...you're really Rowena Ravenclaw."

The beautiful woman smiled warmly at him, her eyes very soft as they looked into his multicolored eyes. "I am but I am not Rowena Ravenclaw. I am a mere memory of her, of myself. Like all portraits, wizards and witches are they, yet they are not." She told him. That just seemed to confuse all but Leoni. Lionel and Sam looked at each other with the same confused look before looking back. "What does that mean?" The blonde asked.

"Some day, you will understand that, young Gryffindor student." Ravenclaw's portrait told him.

Darien just stared in front of the portrait, looking at her. "How long have you been listening to us?"

Ravenclaw looked at him, her face softening even more. She gently reached up and pushed a loose strand of bangs out of her deep blue eyes. "I have heard your entire conversation." She frowned just a little. "It troubles me to hear of what is going on in the castle, what is happening to one of my students."

"But I'm a Gryffidor." Darien said frowning.

Rowena Ravenclaw rose an eyebrow. "You are still one my students. I am one of the Founders, you know." She tilted her head, studying Darien. "Tell me about your dreams and the power you possess, Young one. I wish to hear them again."

Again Darien glanced at his friends with confusion. "My dreams? My power? Why?"

The woman in blue laughed a sweet bell like laugh. "Because I asked you to. Please." She said motioning for him to sit down before the portrait. Darien shrugged before he sat down and told her everything about his dreams and what he could do. The woman in the portrait listened with great interest, her eyes never leaving his. Not for one second. She did look a little concerned when he told her about the dreams that dealt with the Umbra, but she never interupted. She even looked concerned when he told her about the fight with Slytherin, the night when he left.

When Darien finished, she didn't speak for the longest time. She just looked away from him, as if looking at something else. After a while, she looked back at him, a faint smile on her face. "You are in luck, Young Darien Lupin."

"Why is that? Ever since I came to Hogwarts, things have been bad for me." Darien said with a sigh. "The only good thing that has happened is my friends and getting Draco back. Everything else...the students are in danger because I won't let the Umbra demon possess me."

The woman looked like she wanted to reach out and touch his shoulder, but she stopped herself when she couldn't get closer. She sighed, shaking her head. "The curses of being a portrait." She murmured softly. "Now, now, Darien. It is a good thing that you are defying him."

"Why's that?" Darien muttered.

"Because the more you defy him, the weaker he gets."

That made all of the students look at her with wide eyes. "What?!" They all said at once.

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded with a smile. " 'Tis true. The power he seeks from you is a very rare gift, Darien. It has no name but is merely called Mindwalking. Sometimes even mediating. Long ago, when the power was common among the magical world, it was used for many deeds. You speak to spirits that can not be seen. There is a reason for that. The reason why you only see them is because they have unfinished business in the world, so they are not exactly ghosts. Not like the Hogwarts Ghosts. They are just spirits." The founder told the young werewolf. "As for your power of dreams, there is a connection between you and Salazar. You are seeing his life through dreams. I believe the connection is because of his wand that you carry now. The wand chose you because it knew that you possessed the power that Salazar once had."

"Can you tell me more about the power?" Darien asked.

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded. "Yes. What would you like to know?"

Darien thought for a long time before he shrugged. "How does it work exactly? And how dangerous is it? Is that why the Headmaster isn't letting me take early Divination classes?"

There was a long pause before the woman lift her head higher. "We'll start with the first question. Mindwalking is like what your Professor said. It is a different form of Occlumency, only more advanced. To use such a power, you will be able to walk around in your own mind or another's. Imagine your very own mind, exactly like the world you are living in now. It is more magical than this world."

"But it's dangerous." Leoni said softly.

Rowena Ravenclaw looked over at her before she nodded. "It is. It is dangerous in many ways. Long ago, before my time, wizards were using this ability for their own advantages. They used it as an item of revenge for the most ridiculous reasons. Wizards would pull their rivals and enemies into their world of imagination, torturing them in ways that they coud imagine. I have heard that once, a wizard used the mindwalking ability against his own brother who had ruined his favorite robes in a harmless prank, frightening him with the most terrorfying things. He was scared of graveyards, I believe. And the wizard made his brother stay in a graveyard of imagination until his mind nearly snapped." The beautiful witch sighed gently. "You see, even though you are walking in a world that you or someone else created, you still can die. If they wish it, they can kill you. Your body is connected to you mind. It is the power source for everything. With mindwalking, someone could make you think that you are having heart attack. And in the outside world, you will have one."

Darien just stared at her with horror, as did his friends. They were not liking the sound of this at all. "So if the Umbra wanted to, he could kill Darien using his own power?" Lionel asked, his voice thick with concern.

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded, a deep frown on her face. "Yes. And that is why your Headmaster doesn't wish for you to take early Divination lessons. To learn about this sort of ability at such an early age, no matter how well you are at with Divination, it can kill you. You must wait till you are at the right age, my young student." She told Darien.

"But Professor Caligo said that to defeat the demon, I have to have an open mind." Darien said. Rowena Ravenclaw shook her head slowly. "Then he lied to you. To have an open mind, it is like inviting someone who knows the ability into you mind."

That was even more horrorfying to know. Darien felt like someone had just slugged him in the stomache. "Why would he lie to me? I thought...I thought he was trying to help me."

"Maybe he was trying to help, Darien." Sam said with a shrug.

Lionel huffed darkly. "Yeah right! Maybe he really is the Umbra! He's just tricking everyone to make us think he's a good guy when he's really a bad guy!" He recieved a dark look from Sam and Leoni.

"She may be right, young one. He might not have known, he could have been trying to help." Rowena said before they really could argue. Everyone looked at her with confusion. "This Professor Caligo is a Divination Professor, correct?" Ravenclaw recieved nods. "Divination is a very difficult art, young ones. It leads to two different paths without anyone realizing it. It could be neither good or bad. I was never good at it, myself. But Salazar was. That was why he taught Divination when we walked the Earth."

There was a long pause before Darien looked at her with thoughtfulness. His eyes narrowed just a little. "Miss Ravenclaw, do you know what the Negatus Mysterium is?" He got a very alarmed look but then the founder's face softened, yet it was still full of seriousness. "Yes. I do know what it is." The founder spoke.

"Can you tell us?" Rex asked, hopefully.

Rowena Ravenclaw's eyes lowered away from them, her hands curled into one another. She was quiet for a very long time before she looked up into their eyes. "The Negatus Mysterium is forbidden magic to all users. It was forbidden a long time ago by Merlin when someone nearly used it on him. It is the ability to take in the magic from another. It would leave the victim powerless when it's used against them. The wizard, witch or magical creature will no longer have any magic. They will become a squib."

There was a long silence before Lionel nudged Darien's shoulder. "Draco said that the Umbra used to be a wizard and he was stripped of his own powers."

Darien slowly nodded, his eyes lightening up just a little. "Maybe that's what he wants to do! He wants to use it on me. But why?" He looked at Rowena Ravenclaw, his breath caught in his throat as he thought of something. "Does he know how to use the spell?"

The Founder slowly shook her head. "I'm not sure, Darien. But he might. He is very old and has been around for more years than I. The spell is very ancient and has been forgotten."

"Just like the Esuna Mithras." Darien whispered, his eyes looking over at Lionel. "Then Slytherin must know about it. He must know how to do it. But he said he couldn't remember it." He said. Rowena Ravenclaw shook her head. "He probably doesn't. He has been a spirit for over a thousand years, Darien. To be a spirit that long, you forget your former life. I believe he is only beginning to remember his former life, because of you." She told him.

"The Negatus Mysterium...what else can you tell us about it?" Sam asked.

The founder looked at her, solemnly. "Nothing much. Only that it is ancient magic. Once it is used against you, and you lose your magical heritage, it is very hard to get them back. I believe that Umbra wants to use it against you, Darien, because of what you can do."

Darien just looked down. He was quiet for a very long time as he let his thoughts roll around in his mind. "He was a wizard...before he was a demon. In Slytherin's journal, it said that Umbra wanted to use the Negatus Mysterium." He looked at his friends. "That's what he's doing. He wants to use the spell to get his magic back. And much more. He said that he wanted the magic power of all. He will become the most powerful being in the world."

His friends looked horrorfied. "Man, that's going to suck big time. If he becomes the most powerful being, it would be You-Know-Who all over again! Every single person will live in fear because of him!" Lionel said with horror.

Darien stood up sharply, his eyes wider. "We've got to go back to Hogwarts! We have to tell Dumbledore about what Umbra's plan is!"

"Darien," Darien looked at Rowena Ravenclaw, who was looking uneasy. "You must be careful and keep your mind close no matter what. You must pratice that." She told him. "You must keep your mind close at all times."

Darien nodded as he pocketed his wand. "I have to find Slytherin. Do you have any idea where he could be? He disappeared after we found his skeleton." He asked. Rowena Ravenclaw's portrait shivered a little on the wall as she did. "I do not know. But if you truly want to call him, then do so. Just call his name and he will come to you." She said. Darien nodded before looking at his friends and nodded towards the door. "We better go before we get caught."

Everyone nodded and started towards the door, before Darien paused turning back. "Rowena?" The beautiful woman just gave him a puzzled look. "Did you really love him? Did you love Salazar Slytherin?"

A very thoughtful smile spread out on Ravenclaw's face, her face softening into its angelic look. "More than life itself. I loved him with all my heart. I would never have betrayed him. No matter how cold he may have seemed."

Darien slowly smiled back at her, his face just as soft as hers. "He loved you too. He told me that."

If a portrait's being could cry, that would be what Rowena Ravenclaw would be doing right now. Darien could see silver tears in the woman's eyes as she looked at him. "Thank you for telling me that, Darien. I never gave up on him. Not for one second. I know one day, we will be reunited. And when that day comes, the four houses of Hogwarts will stand strong."

Darien smiled at that before he turned and walked out of the house, silently promising that he would do all he could to making that wish come true. For Salazar Slytherin and Rowena Ravenclaw.

"Darien!"

Darien looked up when he heard his friends cried out. He saw that they were looking up into the sky with wide eyes so he looked too. They were looking at the moon and the sun in the sky. Both were quite close to one another.Darien just stared at the moon for a minute. "Oh wow. Looks like we're going to have an eclipse." His eyes then snapped open wide as relization hit him. The sun was close to the mountain line. It was nearly sunset. That meant darkness.

"Run! We have to run for the castle!" He cried out as he began to run as fast as he could.


	23. Chapter 22

**A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews everyone. This really makes me happy on how many people that is reading this and enjoying it. Here's the quick shout out to those who reviewed the last chapter. **

**Foy: Why, thank you. I'm glad you're enjoying it. And I'm surely glad that you have nothing bad to say. As for the question about the name Swiftstar, well...not really. It's just when I started thinking about Hermione's nickname that was the first thing that popped up in my mind and it sounded right so I just called her Swiftstar. I suppose how I came up with that name was because of the birthmark Hermione has, which I really don't know if she does actually, and because of the otter. Otters can run pretty fast and swim faster. Therefor, swift. I just put them together and there you have it. Anyway, keep on reading and enjoy!**

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The five students were still running as soon as the sun was down. They were only half way across the field when it was darker. Darien's heart was beating quite hard against his chest. His friends running along beside him. "I think we can stop running now! We're nearly there!" Lionel called breathlessly. "And I doubt that Umbra would know that we're outside in the dark right off the bat!"

"Yeah right! It's a Darkness demon, Lionel! The darkness is like their eyes!" Sam yelled over to him. Lionel ignored her.

It was at that second Darien stepped into a hole and went down hard. He cried out in pain as he hit the ground. The air being knocked from his lungs from the impact. He heard his friends cry out his name and stop in their tracks. "Darien! Get up! We have to go inside!" Leoni said, hurrying over his side and grabbing his arm. Darien just winced and gasped for breath. "Wait, I need to rest for a second." He huffed. The others just looked around in the dark sky before nodding. "I don't see anything out so I guess it would be all right to rest for a minute." Lionel said, his hands immediately on his knees and he gasped for breath. Darien sat up, rubbing his chest. "Ow. That hurt."

Rex half laughed, half gasped for air. "I don't think it was suppose to tickle, Dari." The others all laughed faintly with him.

Suddenly, they heard the beating of leathery wings approaching them and inhuman. All five stiffened before they looked up into the sky. There were dark figures in the sky and they were too far to see what they were. But for some reason, Darien already knew. His eyes slowly widened as his enhanced sight sent the images to his brain. Gargoyles being lead by a big, black demon.  
"RUN!" He yelled as he jumped to his feet. He staggered a little before he bolted towards the doors. He heard his friends running after him. The five were running as fast as their feet could carry them.

They heard the roars from the gargoyles and a wicked laugh echoing in the air. "DARIEN!! I'M COMING FOR YOU!"

Darien nearly shuddered to hear that voice again. He just wished this stupid demon would leave him alone. He knew that he had better hurry inside where it was safer. "Darien! Duck!" He heard Sam scream. Helooked up before throwing himself to the ground just as a gargoyle's claw nearly took off his head. He hit the ground, missing the talons of the creature by inches before he climbed to his feet again and ran. He couldn't help but look up to see how many gargoyles there may have been. It shocked him to see at least fifteen, nearly twenty. And it surprised him even more to see that that demon was actually flying back, watching the deadly fun. The gargoyles were coming in again.

"We're not going to make it!" Rex cried out as he was starting to slow down. It was at that second a gargoyle slammed down right behind the little Gryffindor, its claws wrapping around him and it was up in the air again with him. "Ahhhh!!" Rex screamed in fear.

The other four halted and looked up into the sky with horror. "NO! Rex!" Darien yelled. The gargoyle with Rex flew higher out of reach, carrying the frightened 11 year old.

"DARIEN!!" The Umbra taunted from above. The gargoyles now flying around the demon and the gargoyle with Rex.

"Rex!!" Darien cried out again. He then gritted his teeth and rushed away from his other friends. "All right, Umbra! Let him go and I'll let you have me! Let him go!" He yelled up into the sky.

The growls from the gargoyles all stopped but the protests from his friends began. They were stunned that Darien was even saying such a thing. But Darien didn't pay any attention to them at all. His eyes just glaring up at the demon, who was just flying high above him. The demon was quiet for a long time before it stopped flapping its large wings and fell from the sky. It threw them out again to slow its fall, slamming into the ground before Darien. The look on the demon's face was quite serious and full of disbelief as it stood before the young Gryffindor.

"Say that again." It growled in a taunting tone.

It made Darien shudder but he did his best to stand up straight, facing the demon. His friends behind him stepped closer as if to protect him. The demon never looked away from Darien.

"I said let him go." Darien said as bravely as he could.

The Umbra just stood there, its wings folded on its back before an evil sneer spread out on its face and it lift its head higher. "Very well." He then snarled into the sky towards the gargoyle. And the gargoyle really did let Rex go.

"NO!" Darien and his friends cried out as they watched Rex's tiny form starting to fall out of the sky. They could see Rex flapping his wings as if he was going to fly. "Rex!"

Darien started to take out his wand to cast the Wingardium Leviosa spell but the demon standing before him, snapped its wings and rushing forward. Its claws grabbing him by the front of his robes and flew into the air. The young Gryffindor cried out as he was lifted up into the air, flying at a very high speed. His wand fell from his hand from being startled. He just grabbed the demon's claws, holding on for dear life.

"Darien!" Lionel, Sam and Leoni screamed from below.

Darien just made himself look around the demon to see Rex still falling. He was getting very close to the ground now. It would only be seconds before he hit the ground, possibly dead.

Suddenly there was a screech. A very much larger form than the other gargoyles appeared out of the darkness, diving for Rex. Seconds later, it flew back into the air, Rex on its back. Darien's eyes squinted a little before he was forced to look at the Umbra, who too was looking towards the creature that rescued Rex. Its fangs were gritted tightly and bared into a snarl. There was no doubt a very angry look on its face. "Damnation!" He growled before turning its eyes onto Darien, sneering a little. "Hello, Darien. I'm so glad you could join me for a night flight. Why don't we go somewhere more private?" he said starting to fly towards the dark forest.

Darien gritted his teeth as he let go of one of the Umbra's claws, grasping the necklace with the Lightstone hidden under his robes. He made a quick glance at the trees they were approaching. There was one that was as high as they were. He only hoped that he could grab it as he fell. If he fell for them.

Unfortunately, the Lightstone under his shirt got stuck and he was having a hard time pulling it out.

"Let me go! Leave me alone!" Darien yelled as he tried to kick the demon's legs. The Umbra snarled at him as his sneakers met its shin before its tail wrapped around his ankles, binding them together. "If you kick me one more time, I will drop you to your death!" It snarled at him.

Darien was now starting to panic. He was still having a hard time trying to get the lightstone out.

Just then, something small and black appeared sinking her beak into the Umbra's back. Rowena the raven had come to the rescue. She sank her talons into the demon's back and began pecking and biting him. The Umbra snarled in pain, spinning in the air to face the raven. He began spinning in circles trying to throw her off his back.

"Rowena!" Darien cried out happily as he tugged at the chain under his shirt.

The raven kept up with her attacks until the demon managed to knock her off. The big black bird caught herself before she starting in for another attack. The Umbra was ready though. It rose its claws and started to swing at her. It was only luck then did Darien get the lightstone free. He pulled it out from his robes, using both hands and held it up in front of him. The white stone immediately flared to life as it touched darkness. The brilliant light turning on like a very bright flashlight.

"ARGH!!!!" The demon snarled in pain as the light touched its black skin. Its skin starting to sizzle like bacon and he let go of Darien. Darien's eyes widened with fear as he began to fall. "AHHHH!!" He cried out, his hands flinging out to catch something, anything. He turned a little to see that he missed the tree he had hoped he would fall into. Instead, he just fell into open space, towards the rocky cliffs.

"Darien!!" He heard Rex's voice from above. But it wasn't the only one's. He had heard Slytherin's voice as well.

Suddenly something slammed into his back, digging into his robes and pulled upward, stopping his fall with a jerk. Darien gasped as he came to a sudden stop and then flew back up into the sky. He was dangling from something.

Looking up, he saw what that something was. A gargoyle!

It startled Darien a little, making him start fighting to get loose before he heard Rex's voice again. "Darien! It's okay! This one is good!"

He looked up again and saw Rex riding the gargoyle. It took a second longer to even recognize the gargoyle flying back to the castle. It was the gargoyle that guarded Dumbledore's office! The one that wasn't connected with the Umbra!

The gargoyle's fierce eyes were on Darien as it curled its other talons under him, letting him sit in its claws and it held him closer to its chest. But then its head jerked when it heard an outraged snarl. Darien jumped a little in the claws of the gargoyle and looked to see the Umbra flying towards them. It stopped several feet away from them though. Its red eyes aimed towards Darien.

"Golem! Give me the boy!"

The gargoyle snarled right back at the demon. "You know not to order me around, Caligo Umbra! You are no leader over me!" It spoke. That stunned both Rex and Darien. They were not aware that gargoyles could speak. Especially this one. It hadn't ever spoken before.  
The Umbra growled angrily but did not attack as Darien thought it would have. He wondered why it wasn't attacking. It usually attacked everything that got into its way of getting its way of doing whatever it wanted. "He is mine, Golem! I want him!"

"The boy is not yours to claim, Umbra! He is his own and he is his parents's claim! He is not a toy you can play with, or prey to hunt! And you will certainly not possess him like you have been doing to many others!" The gargoyle, Golem snarled. It held Darien closer to his chest in a very protective way. Darien glanced up at the look on Rex's face. Rex was looking just as confused but he didn't say anything. He just held onto the gargoyle's shoulders, waiting for something to happen. "Night after night, I've watched you lie to my kin and I have done nothing to stopping you. But no more, Caligo! This stops now! We allowed you into our clan because of the promises of protection! But now I see your true nature!"

"Golem! I still make those promises! Through that boy you hold!" The dark demon, Umbra roared.

The gargoyle roared right back but it didn't sound threatening. No, it sounded more like it was calling for something. The answer soon came. The gargoyles that had been with Umbra were flying towards them. They flew into a circle, along with the Umbra and the gargoyle, Golem. They were looking at Darien and Rex with a menacing look but they did nothing. They just hovered, their wings beating against the air to keep theirselves up. Golem just lift his head higher, glaring around the circle. "Brothers! I call upon you to hear and witness the judgement of Brother Caligo Umbra! This gargoyle who has joined us many, many moons ago! For many moons he has used you for his own doings and I grow tired of it!" Golem roared into the sky for all to hear. "I know he has promised endless nights! I know he has told you to follow him and do his asking, for he will grant us endless darkness where we can roam free and forever!"

Darien gasped a little as he felt himself being lifted away from the gargoyle's chest. He clutched at the gargoyle's leg as he was lifted in front of it, for all to look at him. He just looked around at the leery eyes trained on him before he looked at the glaring demon. The Umbra looked like him wanted to snatch him away from Golem but he was keeping himself from doing so.

"This is the welp he wishs to use! This is his precious key to absolute darkness! A youngling! A child! And you all went with him! It is against the Gargoyle Order!" Golem roared.

There was a sudden murmur through the gargoyles. Some were looking at one another with shame, whispering to one another while the others were hovering firm and watched Darien with a hunger that made him shiver. The gargoyle, Golem seemed to feel it because he brought him closer to his chest again, into a protective embrace. "That is against our ways, brothers! We swore many years ago that we were not to harm younglings! Umbra has taken that oath as well! And he has broken it by trying to harm this particular youngling!"

"Golem! It is only one child...!" Umbra spoke up.

"SILENCE!!" Golem snarled, his powerful voice echoing in the air all around the gargoyles and towards the distance.

Darien was pretty sure that the entire Hogwarts castle heard that. He even took the chance to look towards the castle and stopped. Hovering far from where they were on brooms were several Aurors. Darien could see Harry, Ron and Draco sitting on their brooms, watching. It was more than likely that they were listening into what the gargoyle was saying as well. It made him wonder why they haven't came to his rescue yet. But instead of saying anything, he looked back at the circle of gargoyles.

"Caligo! You are a liar to both gargoyles and humans! I know for a fact that you have been planning for many moons since this youngling came to the castle! You have been waiting for the Day of Darkness to make your move on this boy! I have waited and listened to the stories that has been passing through the halls of Hogwarts! I have heard of what you've done to the younglings! I know of your greatest enemy in the castle! He has come to me for aid for what you've been doing! I may not see him but I can hear him!"

Darien gasped inwardly. 'Slytherin! So that's what he's been doing!' He thought. He stayed silent to listen longer.

"You have broke many of our laws, Umbra! It is barbaric and brutal to harm younglings! You have put many of your brothers to shame because of your ways! And you have used them for your evil deeds! For that, there will be punishment!" Golem roared.

The Umbra bared his fangs before flying forward. "Brother Golem! I have right to defend myself! Let me speak!"

There was a long pause before Golem nodded, his grip on Darien tightening. "Very well, Brother Caligo Umbra. Speak and we will listen. But do not come any closer to me and these younglings! You have done enough harm to them as it is!" He growled.

The Umbra seemed to agree anyway. He just flew a little closer till he was in the center of the circle. His red eyes slowly turning to look at the other gargoyles watching him. "I know I have broken the rule about attacking younglings and for that I deeply apologize. But I have good causes for it. What is one youngling to us? We dislike humans, so why worry about this one? It means one less human to worry about! He will not hunt us like we have been hunted!" He growled still looking around, almost waiting for someone to interupt. But when none of the other gargoyles interupted he spoke on. "I have promised eternal darkness for you! We will live in a world full of darkness, where we can roam in freedom! I must have that boy to uphold my promises! He is our key to salvation! He is to be our bringer of freedom! With his powers, we will plunge the world in darkness, where we don't have to sleep in stone all the time! We will not have to worry about the pain of light touching us! Gargoyles should be the rulers, not humans! We have slaved away for them our entire lives since the Dark Ages! I say it is enough! It is time for the Age of the Darkness! The age of the gargoyles!" The demon roared, his claws balled up above his head.

Gargoyles all around Darien began to roar in triumph. They were flapping their wings and tossing their heads, shouting their agreements. The Umbra was grinning maddly, looking like he already won.

However, the gargoyle, Golem was the only one that hadn't said anything or cheered with his fellow brothers. Instead, a smirk curled on its face before he lifted his head higher. He lifted his other claws and Darien saw the raven land on it, resting her wings. The raven turned her eyes onto Darien, looking almost like she was smiling. Darien wasn't sure what it was. But he could almost hear a voice inside his head. 'It'll be all right, Darien. Golem will not let them touch you.' That voice sounded too familiar. It made him just wonder where he had heard it from.

"Spirited words, Brother Caligo." Golem spoke up.

The voices of the other gargoyles slowly died down as eyes turned towards the proud leader of the gargoyles. Darien even looked up and was startled to see that the gargoyle's eyes were now glowing an amber color. They looked almost too familiar. They also made him wonder where he had seen them before.

"But there is still one who has not spoken in this circle. One who deserves to be heard." Golem then lifted Darien away from his chest again, holding him up. Darien looked over at the gargoyle as soon as he was lifted into the air, still sitting in the claws.

"The youngling? But Brother Golem...!" One gargoyle to Golem's right side argued.

"Silence, Brother Brock." Golem said in a surprising soft tone. He didn't sound threatening as he had been with the Umbra earlier. He was just telling the gargoyle to keep his tongue. "The boy has a right to speak. It is his life that is on the line because of our gargoyle brother. Human and not gargoyle, he still has the right to speak in the circle."

There was a long silence. Darien just looked nervously around at the gargoyles, some glaring at him while others merely looked at him. He felt Golem's claws under him shift a little and he looked at the gargoyle, who gave him an encouraging look.

"Speak, Young Lupin. Tell my gargoyle brothers why we should spare your life and not hand you over to Umbra." Golem spoke before bringing him a little closer. "Tell them what he really is."

For some reason, Darien knew what he was talking about. He felt a new wave of courage wash over him. It was those eyes that were comforting him. Those amber colored eyes. Where in the world had he see those eyes before?

Then a flash of memory entered his mind. Darien's mouth slowly fell as he just stared into Golem's eyes. 'Godric...Gryffindor?' He thought. But he didn't say anything as he turned his eyes onto the other gargoyles. The Umbra was glaring at him as if daring him to even ruin his chance. That just made Darien more braver. He knew that if the gargoyles were turned against him, Hogwarts would be safe from him. So he lift his head up higher and tightened his hold on Golem's leg.

"I don't know what I could say...to make you help me." Darien said uneasily, yet his voice didn't waver as he thought it would. "All I could say is, I'm just a kid. Nothing special and probably not even worth your time. But before you do hand me over to the Umbra, let me enlighten you on something. Like you guys, I am a brother too. I have two younger brothers who needs me. Someone has to make sure they are taken care of. Sure, my parents could take care of them. They still need me. They need an older brother to help them with bullies." Darien's eyes darkened a little as he looked at the darkness demon. "Bullies like him. The Umbra."

The demon growled, his eyes narrowing dangerously but he didn't move. Darien had watched his eyes flick up to the gargoyle behind him and he knew that the demon wasn't moving because of him.

"I know I have some kind of weird power. Some kind of mindwalking thing. And I know that it was used a long time ago in negative ways." Darien said, remembering what the portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw had told him and his friends. "But I would never do that. I wouldn't make people suffer just because of the stupidest reasons. And I would never hurt gargoyles. I'm just a kid and I have good parents. I'm raised by the nicest people. I have the greatest friends. Just like Salazar Slytherin did before the Umbra ordered gargoyles to kill him!" He said loudly. He saw a few of the gargoyles pull faces or look away. He knew that those gargoyles were the ones that may have killed Slytherin. Darien pointed at the Umbra, who was looking even more angrily. "As for him being a gargoyle, that's a lie. He is not a gargoyle. He is a demon! A darkness demon! He has the power of shapeshifting has been doing it for a very long time. And he wants to use the Negatus Mysterium against me and many others! I know it's not just me he wants to use. He used to be a wizard. Didn't you, Umbra?!"

The darkness demon snarled, flying forward a little but he immediately halted when Golem jerked Darien closer to his chest, his body turning a little in a protective way. "Lies! They are lies!" The demon growled.

"No, they are not!" Darien said, glaring at the demon. "We found a book that said stuff about the Umbra. The Umbra is a demon of darkness. A demon who dwells in the shadows of the world." He paused for a second, recalling all of the information he learned. "You were a dark wizard, a follower of a warlock called Beliar De Diablo. After you lost in the dark ages, you were exiled, weren't you? You lost your magical powers by the Negatus Mysterium and now you want them back so you're going to use the same spell to take away my magical heritage. Well guess what, Umbra? You can't have them! They are mine! And I will not you possess me!" He said in a very defiante way.

Darien could hear some of the Aurors cheer silently far him. He even looked over to see that some were smiling proudly. Harry was giving him a nod while Ron threw a fist into the air, laughing. Draco was smirking from his broom before he waved at Darien when he noticed him looking. Darien just nodded before looking at the gargoyle behind him. Golem was giving him a smile, as if telling him he said the right thing.

"How touching." The Umbra growled.

Darien looked at him, his face hardening a little to see the dark look on the demon's face. The demon was angry. He was being defied again and it looked like he was running low on patience.

"I see you have found the history of a pathedic wizard called Umbra and decided to use his story against me. I have been with the gargoyles for a very long time and they would not believe a lying little snotnose like you." The Umbra growled with a sneer. He folded his powerful black arms. "Make notice of that."

"We shall see, Brother Umbra." Golem said, his voice very hard.

The Umbra just glared at the Gargoyle leader. "This youngling is a liar, Golem. And you have heard wrong about me. I do not know anything about the spell called Negatus Mysterium and I know nothing of being a demon." That was a lie and Darien knew it. Just by looking at the wretched creature told him that he was a demon.

"Oh yeah?" Rex suddenly spoke up. All eyes went to the little Gryffindor. Some of the gargoyles looked surprised to see him. He had been quiet the entire time so they all nearly forgot that he was there. "Why don't we just ask the one you killed, himself." Rex looked at Darien. "Darien, remember what Rowena Ravenclaw said? If you want to speak to Slytherin, all you have to do is call him."

Darien frowned but then he nodded and looked around the darkness. "Slytherin! Salazar Slytherin, where are you?!" He called.

Suddenly on Darien's side, the ghost appeared out of thin air like he usually did. Slytherin's arms folded against his chest and his face twisted with seriousness. His eyes staring straight at the demon, who immediately looked at him with a glare.

"Slytherin! Thank god you're here!" Darien said looking at him.

The grumpy ghost didn't look at him but he nodded to Golem. "Do not fret, boy. This wretched demon will not touch you. The gargoyle will see to that." He told him.

"Can they see you too?" Darien asked, motioning to the gargoyles, who all seemed confused. The ghost shook his head. "No. You and Umbra are the only ones who can see me. But they can hear me. Gargoyles have amazing hearing." He tilted his head towards the raven sitting on the gargoyle's other claws. "Though, I'm starting to contemplate that your bird sees me as well."

Darien just smiled as he looked at Rowena before holding out his arm to her. The raven cawed once before she flew over to him, landing on his arm. Golem lowered his other claws now that she was off it.

Slytherin turned his attention to the Umbra. "Gargoyles! Though you do not see me, you can hear me! So listen up!" He growled. Some of the gargoyles started to growl right back but they didn't interupt. "What the boy just said to you is true! That creature, there, is no gargoyle. He pretended to be so that he would earn your trust. He made me believe he was one as well! But I knew after a while that he was no gargoyle! He has lied to you so that you would do his bidding. With your help, he would be able to wreck terror in this world! That is what he wants! To make one fear him more and more, it gives him power. And I know that is not your beliefs. You may terrorfy humans without meaning but that demon does it for more power! The darkness he seeks is not for you! It's for himself!"

There was a murmuring among the gargoyles, yet none cut in.

"Some of you were the ones that killed me in that pit of darkness, I recognize many of you. But you did it because that creature told you I was going to hunt you down and destroy you. That was a lie. I have nothing against gargoyles. They are suppose to be the protectors of the castle. That was why we, the Hogwarts Founders, allowed you to come here in the first place. You were not enslaved, my friends, as the demon made you think. You were free to leave any time you wanted to. We would not have stopped you." Salazar Slytherin told the gargoyles. "As for this world of darkness, you may do it. Take over the magical world and kill all wizards and witches. But ask yourselves right now. Is that the gargoyle way? To kill all the people you promised to protect? No matter how mischievous you are, you are the protectors of the night! The sacred protectors of castles, monastaries, churches, buildings! And if you continue to follow this demon, you will not be gargoyles any longer, but stone monsters!" And the ghost went silent.

No gargoyle said a thing as they just flapped their wings to stay in the air. They were all murmuring with one another, while the Umbra was silently arguing with some of them. The gargoyles finally went silent as they looked at Golem, who lift his head higher.

"We have heard the words of a youngling and a unseen spirit. A man that was killed by our very own kind, by some of you. Just because our brother ordered for it." The gargoyle leader spoke. His eyes narrowed dangerously. "That is not our ways!" He shouted. There was an eerie silence as the words slowly echoed around them. Some gargoyles had flinched and looked away almost in shame. The others just looked around at the ones that looked shameful. The Umbra was looking even more angry. "That is not our ways." Golem said in a more softer tone, his eyes slowly looking around the circle. Again he lifted Darien into the air. "Take a very good look at this youngling, brothers. He is only eleven years old and he has a power that has not been used for a very long time. Yet, he does not wish to use it against us. Nor against others. He is a werewolf's son! A creature of the night as we are! He is one of us in a different way." Golem's eyes looked back at the dark look on the darkness demon's face. "Brother Umbra is not one of us! He may be a creature of the darkness, the creature of darkness. But he has lied and betrayed us. He has used our clan for the last time. As chosen leader of the Darkwyngs, I pass my judgement onto this creature! The punishment is banishment!"

There was an explosion of snarls and roars. The demon threw his wings back glaring at the leader. "How can you take this little welp's word over mine! I am your brother! Everything I've been doing is for the clan! You know this! I have never slain anyone! I have...!"

"Silent your tongue, Brother Caligo Umbra!" Another gargoyle snarled, his bat like face twisting with rage. "Brother Golem is right! You have used us! You told us to kill Salazar Slytherin thousands of moons ago! We should have never listened to you! He was unarmed and injured and yet you still told us to kill him! His weapons of defense were only snakes! And we still killed him! Using the spells you taught us! The Avada Kedevra!"

The demon snarled before he glared towards Golem, Darien and Slytherin. His eyes mainly on Darien, looking threatening. "You..." He hissed. "You have ruined everything I've worked so hard for! And you are only a boy!" He snarled. He suddenly began flying forward at a very high speed. "I will not possess you now! I will kill you!"

Darien flinched as the demon came very close. He felt the claws under him suddenly jerk and he was against the gargoyle's chest again. The wind suddenly picked up as Golem flapped his wings hard, flying upward into the sky to dodge the attack. Darien felt the raven leave his arm after he had been jerked around. But he knew that she was still close by. He could almost sense her.

Suddenly bright light spells came flying towards them. The Aurors had finally made their moves. They flew at top speed on their brooms, suddenly surrounding the gargoyle and Darien. Their wands aimed onto the angry darkness demon.

"Don't you dare touch him, monster!" Ron barked.

Darien looked at the demon flying at the front of the large group before he looked over his shoulder to see all of the gargoyles now growling, looking ready to defend their leader from the Umbra demon.

"You will not be able to protect that boy for long! And you will not stop me from achieving what I have worked for! When you are not looking, he will die!" The Umbra snarled before he vanished into the darkness.

The young Gryffindor shivered as he closed his eyes, pressing his face against the gargoyle's chest. He did not like the sound of that at all. He knew that Umbra meant what he just said. He was in danger even more. The demon wasn't wanting to take his powers now. He just really wanted to kill him.

"It's all right, boy. He will not touch you." He heard Slytherin say. Darien opened his eyes again and looked at the ghost with a faint smile. "Thanks, Slytherin. You came when I needed you."

The grumpy ghost just stared at him before his lips curved upward and his face softened. He reached over and patted him on the arm. And Darien felt it. "As did you, Darien Lupin. You came when I needed you." He told him.

Darien nodded before he looked up at Rex, who was smiling back. Then he looked at the gargoyle holding him. "Thanks, Golem. I thought I was done for back there." He said. The gargoyle just looked at him, faintly smiling. "You almost were, youngling. But do not thank me. Thank your ghost friend. He spent a few days trying to get me to listen to him in your behalf. I'm afraid I'm not the best listener while I'm guarding Dumbledore's office."

"Well, I'm glad that you were listening then." Darien said in a low voice.

The gargoyle looked to the Aurors when they flew closer. "Darien, are you all right?" Harry asked. Darien nodded. "Yeah. I am now."


	24. Chapter 23

* * *

They were still outside, standing around with the gargoyles standing around them, almost in a protecting way. All of the Aurors stood behind the young students while Dumbledore listened to the Gargoyle leader, Golem. Remus and Hermione were listening too, while looking at Darien with concern. The ghost of Slytherin wasn't hovering too far from where Darien was, listening to what the verdict would be.

After a long time, Dumbledore looked at Darien, who lowered his head. There was a pause before the Headmaster nodded for him to step closer. "Darien, you know of what your parents wish, don't you?" He asked. Darien nodded before he met the Headmaster's eyes. "Yes. But I don't want to leave Hogwarts. I would be no better at home than here. No matter what, Umbra's going to follow me. And that would put my little brothers in danger. And my mom. I can't let that happen."

"Darien," Hermione started but Remus placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Wait. He might be right, Swift. It would endanger James and Peter." He said quietly. His eyes closed. Remus looked very tired. More tired than he ever had been. He reached up and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I don't know what to do now. I'm tired of being so worried about my son. This has to stop now."

Sirius placed his hand on his best friend's shoulder in a comforting way. "He'll be all right, Remus." He promised.

The gargoyle, Golem nodded, his head lifting higher. "Yes. He will. He's better staying here in the castle than going away from here. Now that that wretched creature has been banished from our clan, we have no connection with him. He has lost the connection with the gargoyles. We are protectors of this place. Umbra will not show his face on the grounds again if he is wise. For he does, we will pounce."

There was a long silence before Dumbledore nodded. His twinkling eyes went over to Remus. "He will be well guarded now, Remus. The gargoyles are the best guardians we may have. Especially at night." He told him.

Remus and Hermione looked at one another, almost having a silent conversation between each other before they nodded. They looked back at Darien. "It is for the best if he stays in Hogwarts. But if one more thing happens to him, I won't be able to take it. If anything were to happen to Darien, it would kill me." Hermione said, her voice wavering.

Darien saw the look on Salazar Slytherin's face. There was something about that expression. It was almost familiarity. Almost like, he was looking at her with passion. Darien knew that Slytherin was seeing Rowena Ravenclaw through his own mother. He looked around at everyone before standing taller. "Nothing is going to happen to me, mom." Everyone looked at him, a little surprised to hear that he was not scared. And Darien wasn't. He was tired of being scared and he would not be it anymore. Not because of the darkness demon. "I don't care how many times the Umbra shows his ugly face! He will not hurt anyone anymore! And I won't let him try to kill me! I will fight back." He said as bravely as he could.

Slowly, one by one, everyone smiled. Golem lift his head higher, his chest puffing out. "I see a true Gryffindor through this boy. May Godric Gryffindor be proud of this student."

Remus smiled as he ruffled his fingers through his son's hair. "That's my son all right."

Darien looked over at his friends, who were all smiling before Lionel held up the black with the red tint wand. He then tossed it over to him. Darien caught it, holding it up and started at the slightly glowing red S. Then he looked over at Slytherin, who smirked at him. "Someday, you are going to be a great wizard." The ghost whispered before he vanished.

* * *

The next few days were just as normal as ever. Darien carried out his classes with his friends, getting good grades and ticking Ian Whitman and his goons off with a few harmless pranks. Draco was sticking around with Harry and Ron. A few times Darien had caught sight of him learning magic from the two. It was more than likely they were helping him with what he had missed over the years. 

However, things between Darien and Slytherin starting to change just a little. only a few nights after the last incident with the Umbra, the ghost appeared out of thin air, like always, as Darien was staring out his window. Rowena had warned him first so he wouldn't be startled when the ghost showed up.

"Would you like to start on those lessons now?"

Darien looked up, frowning with confusion. "What?"

The ghost nodded as he lowered himself to the ground and stood before Darien. "The Divination lessons. Would you like to start learning them?"  
The young Gryffindor was quiet for a long moment before scratching the back of his neck. "I don't know. I heard that they were too dangerous. Even Rowena Ravenclaw's portrait told me so."

The Slytherin Ghost was quiet for a moment before he looked out the window. "So you found our secret spot." Darien just looked at him with confusion, while the ghost faintly sighed. "It was our place to get away from it all. Just the two of us. I had promised her once that we would live in that little cabin. Just us. And our offspring, if we had any." Slytherin said in a low voice. He then looked at Darien. "I wouldn't teach you these lessons I have in my mind if I knew they were too dangerous for you. You are one of my students. Gryffindor or not."

A faint smile slowly curled onto Darien's face before he nodded. "Okay. What do I do?"

The Slytherin ghost just nodded at him. "Lay back against your headboard and close your eyes." He told him. Darien nodded before he did what he was told. He folded his hands together, resting them on his stomache. "Okay. What next?"

"Just relax, as if you were going to go asleep." He heard Slytherin say. "Take a very deep breath and relax your entire body."

Darien nodded before he did so. He almost felt like he was going to go to sleep if he relaxed anymore. He eventually yawned and he heard Slytherin scowl at him. "Stop that." He grumbled. Darien just laughed and tried to relax again. "Good. Now, in a few minutes, things may spook you just a little but try to keep relaxed. It does intend to get a little uncomfortable and you will see things that may scare you. But whatever you do, stay relaxed." Slytherin told him. Darien frowned a little but nodded. "What's going to happen?" He asked in a low voice.

For a second, he thought Slytherin might have been scowling at him but when the ghost spoke, he didn't sound angry or impatient. He was speaking in a teaching voice. A tone that his teachers used on him all the time. "What you will see, is what your own mind has created, Young Darien Lupin. As you enter inside your own mind, you see very unreal things. But you must remember, what you see is not what you see. They are illusions of your own mind. So you must stay calm. You will see your own desires and your own fears. What you love, what you hate, and what you fear. It is what makes your mind what it is. You will see your very own world. And in time, when you master these lessons, you will be able to escape the outside world and enter inside your world. You can do this when you are at the most stressed times. This is your secret spot. But you have to be careful. Because if you allow any unwanted visitors inside, like the Umbra, it is only up to you to get him back out. You will have to battle him. And if that ever happens, you must remember, what you see is not what you see."

Darien slowly nodded before he relaxed even more. "Okay. I think I'm ready." He said in a quiet tone.

There was a long silence before he felt his body starting to tingle. It was almost like it had just fallen asleep on him. Then he could feel air on his face. Something was happening. He could feel it. He felt his brow crease a little before his vision seemed to just snap open. It was like he opened his eyes but he knew he hadn't. He felt himself starting to tense as he found himself falling in a long dark oblivion.

"Relax, boy. Remember what I said. You are only taking the first step. Don't go back now." He heard Slytherin say. Darien did his best into relaxing, which seemed enough.

Suddenly colorful rings began to fly past him as he fell in his own subconscious. He then felt himself starting to slow his fall and suddenly he lightly landed on a large green grassy field. It was almost like the Quidditch fields that Harry and Ron practiced Quidditch. He remembered how they let him and his little brothers watch them play with the older Weasleys. It made him gasp as he looked around the large green field. It was endless greens with books lying in piles here and there. He even saw several scrolls lying next to them. He could almost smell the green grass under his feet. He could even smell fresh dirt. It was like when his mother would do her gardening. The sky above him was deep blue, like the ocean with only silver and golden puffy clouds slowly rolling over.

"Not bad."

Darien jumped a little turning around to see who it was. It was, to his surprise, Salazar Slytherin. The Hogwarts Founder was looking around, almost admiring what he saw. He had his arms folded behind his back, his hood had fallen back to reveal his slightly long black hair. The ghost's eyes were quite bright though. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

"Your own world is not a bad looking one. You have a good imagination. I see you like to read as much as I did when I was younger." He said nudging a very large book with his foot.

Darien slowly looked around. "This is my mind world?"

The ghost nodded. "This is what you desire to do most of your time. It always works this way on the first try."

Darien frowned to hear that. "My first try?"

"Of course, I did help you. You couldn't have possibly done it by yourself. I may be a ghost but I still have my own mindwalking ability." Slytherin told him as he turned away to look off into the distance.

Darien looked and smiled to see a deep blue ocean not far. It seemed to go on forever. "Wow." He whispered with great awe.

Slytherin chuckled as he looked down at him. "Good decisions on what you wanted. Now let's do the first lesson. Summoning images." He pointed towards a pile of books. "Imagine those books into anything you want. You must really concentrate on them though. What do you want those books to become?"

Darien frowned as he stared at the books Slytherin had pointed at. He didn't know what he wanted. He liked books too much. More than most of anything. But what else did he like? He tried to think. And then he thought of his wizarding chess set. He tried to imagine them in front of him.

And before he knew it, there was a small popping noise and the books vanished and his chess set appeared. He was at awe. "It worked!" He said excitedly. He watched as the chess set pieces began to play against one another. He frowned to see that the whites were losing already.  
Slytherin just chuckled. "You still have a little work to do. But soon you will beat the illusionary works."  
Darien looked up at him before realizing something. "You're making the black pieces win, aren't you?" He asked. Slytherin nodded. "That is one trick that Umbra might use against you if you ever fight him in your mind. He will try to use your very own weapons against you. You must learn how to control them. We will practice this a lot when we do this. Every time we come into your mind, we will play Wizarding chess. And we will do it until you win. Understand?"

Darien nodded with agreement. "How do we get out again?"

"Normally it's not simple to get back out but don't fear. I will help you." Slytherin said. That didn't ease Darien very well but he nodded. "Okay. How do you do it?"

Slytherin just turned to him. "You need to will your mind to wake up. It will take a lot of concentration. It's like being in a deep sleep and trying to wake up so suddenly. Slowly, you will gain what you want. Before we go, I must show you how dangerous that this can be. It won't be too dangerous, of course." He reassured him when Darien got a very scared look on his face.

Slytherin reached down and picked a single strand of grass before holding it up in front of Darien. "Now then. As you see, this piece of grass seems harmless, right?" Darien only nodded. "But you must remember. In mindwalking, this is a battle of imagination. If I wished it, this grass," Slytherin paused as he frowned in concentration. Suddenly the grass grew bigger and turned silver. It had become a dagger. Darien stepped back feeling a little nervous. ", can become a dangerous and sharp weapon. That is what the Umbra will use on you if he ever pulls you into this imaginary world. He will try to kill you by using any element he calls." Slytherin finished.

Darien swallowed hard as he stared at the blade. "And...and if he wanted, he could kill me with it. But I thought it was all an illusion."

Slytherin nodded as he looked at the blade in his hand. "It is. But if you think that it isn't, it can harm you. Hold up your hand." He told him. Darien gave him a very alarmed look as he stepped back even more. Slytherin didn't move closer. He just gave him a reassuring look. "Trust me, young Lupin. I will not hurt you. You know that." Darien swallowed hard again before he did so. Slytherin hesitated before he took Darien's hand into his own. He could almost feel Slytherin's own hand.

"Now you must relax and remember, the illusion is not real. Say that five times." The ghost told him.

Darien winced as he did so as he watched Slytherin bring the dagger up to his index finger. He tightly closed his eyes before crying out in pain as he felt the dagger cut in his finger. He jerked his hand back away from Slytherin, giving the ghost a very reproachful look. The cut wasn't even that deep at all. It was just like a pin prick but it still hurt. "I thought you said..."

"I said, your mind makes it real. If you think this dagger is real, then you will get hurt. You must remember that it is all an illusion. You have to believe it, young one." Slytherin cut him off. He then willed the dagger to turn back into a grass blade. "Now we will return." And everything went black.

When Darien reopened his eyes, he still felt the ache in his finger and he looked down to see a droplet of blood on his index finger. He looked up at the ghost with wide eyes, who slowly shook his head. "As I have said. Your mind makes it real. But you must always remember. It is not real. You must decide in your own mind world what is real and what is not." He told him before he faintly smiled at him. "You did well for your first time. And in time, you will learn how to fight the other's control." He paused for a second. "And you will learn how to let blades touch you, yet they will not hurt you. I promise that it will be a blessing in the end."

Darien only nodded before he used his want to clean the blood off and heal the wound by letting the wand's tip touch the cut.

* * *

Other than taking the lessons from Slytherin, he was also learning how to close his mind. Slytherin made him practice against him. It was very difficult though. Slytherin may have been a ghost, but he spoke true to what he said before. He still had his abilities. Darien told Lionel, Rex, Sam and Leoni about his new lessons, with Slytherin's okay, of course. They seemed to be really excited to hear about them every time Darien got done doing them. They even sometimes sat in the same room while he went into the mind world with Slytherin. And when he got done, he found them giving him bored looks and they would eventually tell him that he had been at it for almost two hours. So they tried to find their own fun while he did his own lessons. When they found out about Slytherin poking him with a dagger in the mind world, they freaked. 

"And we thought he was trying to be a friend!" Lionel growled. "You can't let him do that, Darien!

Darien just rolled his eyes as he wiped his index finger. "For crying out loud, Lionel. It's just my finger and a very small cut. It's better Slytherin than the Umbra. At least Slytherin is trying to teach me how to look past it. I almost had it this time. Even Slytherin said so. Besides, if I didn't let him do it, the Umbra could do it to me, only he wouldn't stab my finger. He would stab me in the chest. I could die if I didn't do this lesson." He told them.

Sam and Leoni both nodded. "He's got a point. Though, we best not tell your parents about this."

Darien winced at the idea. Just to even think about telling his mom made him cringe. He knew that if she found out that Slytherin was poking him with an illusionary dagger and it was actually cutting him, she would freak. He could almost see her performing an exorcism already.

The better part was there had not been a single sign of the Umbra for the whole month of February, going into March. It was probably because of the gargoyles guarding at night. Darien would sometimes sit on his window sill with his four friends and watch them flying around at night or prowl on the walls, almost searching the entire grounds. He would also see Rowena sitting on the gargoyle, Golem's shoulder. It surprised him to see that Dumbledore's gargoyle wasn't sitting in its original position. He later found out that Dumbledore replaced the gargoyle with a portrait of a winged lion to guard his stairwell. It was probably just for a little while until they caught the Umbra. Darien also rarely saw Professor Caligo at breakfast, lunch or dinner. He heard from his dad that the professor had been spending a lot of time in his Divination Tower. No one really knew why but everyone was pretty sure that he was looking in his crystal ball, keeping an eye out for any sign of the Umbra. Though, no one was really sure.

Darien was also spending most of his time with his friends, hanging out with Harry, Ron and Draco. A few times the three suggested a few spells that Darien and his friends tried out. Even Sam and Leoni were trying them. At least Lionel and Sam weren't bickering and fighting as they used to. They were actually starting to get along just fine. Which was quite nice.

Not much had changed other than that. The Divination lessons were going smoothly with Slytherin as were the real lessons. Darien always was with his father on the full moon. And then he remembered something. He remembered how close the moon was to the sun.

There was going to be an eclipse. That hadn't happened for a very long time now. It would definitely be a sight to see for Darien and his friends. But there was something nagging at him. What would happen if the world would be plunged into darkness like that? Would the gargoyles still be able to move around when it was dark? He didn't know so he decided to ask what seemed to be the right person, or in his case, thing to ask.

Darien waited for everyone to be asleep before he decided to sneak out of the Gryffindor Common room and head to where the gargoyles usually were hanging out. He knew that he shouldn't have been doing it but he just wanted to know and the only way was to ask the gargyoles.

Eventually, he got caught along the way.

"Darien, what in Merlin's beard are you doing out of the Gryffindor House?" Harry asked impatiently after he intercepted him on the way towards the stairs. Darien grimaced as he stood in front of Harry, shrugging a little. "I just wanted to talk to the gargoyles about something, Harry."

"Oh really?" About what?" Harry asked with a smirk.

Darien just shrugged. "Well, there's going to be an eclipse in a few days. But surely you know about it. I just wanted to know if gargoyles would be able to move around during it. I don't think my dad actually knows because there hadn't been an eclipse for a while now."

Harry just frowned at the question but then he smiled as he placed his hand on Darien's shoulder. "Well, I can't answer that question so why don't we just go find out. After that, it's back to bed for you. You have classes in the morning." He told him. Darien just laughed as he walked with Harry towards the stairs.

They soon found out where the Gargoyles were patrolling on the walls. Some of them eventually looked over at the two before looking back out to the grounds, searching for any sign for the Umbra. Darien spotted the gargoyle, Golem standing on top of a high tower but when he saw the two wizards, he took flight and landed on the wall, nodding his head in greeting.

"Good evening, Young Lupin, Young Harry Potter. What brings you out so late at night? Should you not be resting for the night?" Golem asked with light humor.

Darien and Harry both smiled but shrugged at the same time. "Uh, actually," The young Gryffindor paused stepping closer to the gargoyle. "I was wondering something...something about the gargoyles."

Golem tilted his head before sitting down on his hindquarters. "Yes? And you wished to ask us about it." He said with a hint of a question.

Darien nodded biting his lip. "Yeah. I was wondering about the eclipse and gargoyles. When an eclipse happens, can gargoyles wake up while its dark out?"

There was a very long silence before Golem looked away, breathing out softly. His breath touched half of Darien's face. "I am afraid not, Young Lupin. The eclipse is the Day of Darkness. Yet it is still day and not night. It is not the day for Gargoyles." he said. Darien felt his chest almost cave in with disappointment. He lowered his gaze, frowning. "But the Umbra said that it would be the day when gargoyles can roam free forever."

Another long silence but Golem shook his head. "There is a legend amongst the gargoyles saying that one day, the darkness will be forever and we will be free to fly endlessly. However, when the day comes, there is a chance that it will never happen. And that is the choice of gargoyles, young one. We must choose if we want the day of darkness to be forever. That is why the Umbra wanted our alliance with him. There is a magic that only gargoyles posess. He wanted us to use our magic to make the sun and moon aligned forever. And if that would ever happen, then darkness would settle all over the planet and never again the light of the sun would touch the planet again. It would be the Dark Ages all over again." He paused to lower himself onto the wall, closer to Darien and Harry. "However, again, all gargoyles, every where must make that decision. But I know for a fact that more than half of the gargoyles do not agree with the Umbra. It is also said that when an eclipse happens, the gate way to the spirit world will open up."

Darien frowned at that. "Gateway to the spirit world?"

Harry's eyes lit up a little. "You're talking about Hell, aren't you? It's the place where Voldemort is trapped."

The gargoyle solemnly nodded, his wings folding on his back, closer to his body. "Him and many others that have been in the same situation. If the Umbra truly wished it, he could open up those gates and release all of the dark wizards that had been trapped by the spirits of their victims." He told them.

Darien felt his breath catch in his throat. "That means he could release Lord Voldemort and it would be Hell on earth again."

"And he could gather his old followers from Azkaban and whoever hadn't been caught." Harry added. "The wizarding world would be living in terror once again."

The gargoyle only nodded. "Yes. Unless," He paused waiting for both of them to look very curious. His amber colored eyes met Darien's. ", the Founders of Four can be reunited."

"The Hogwarts Founders? How does that help? They're all dead." Harry asked in confusion.

The gargoyle only gave him a sly smile. "Yet, Salazar Slytherin still walks the Earth. If he does, why can not the other three?"

Darien just looked off, trying very hard to place the puzzle pieces together. He sighed before running his fingers through his hair. "I don't get it. So many things are happening at once. First, the Umbra wants to possess me and steal my powers so he can become a wizard again. Second, he suddenly wants to bring the world into darkness forever. Third, he wants to free Voldemort and all the dark wizards. And now, we have to someway bring the Four Founders together. All I know is that Salazar Slytherin is a ghost that only I can see. And we found a talking portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw. But I haven't found anything on Godric Gryffindor or Helga Hufflepuff."

"For if the Four houses do not reunite we will crumble within." The gargoyle suddenly spoke making Harry and Darien look at him. "What?" The Auror asked.

Darien suddenly remembered the Sorting Hat's song. His eyes lit up as he remembered the words like it was only yesterday he heard them.

_"__After many fights with Gryffindor, Slytherin had decided to depart,_

_ignoring the pleas of the three, he left them with a broken heart._

_In the future years, his spirit still wanders, hoping to find the truth,_

_of how he had fallen so far down and how he get back to his roots._

_His spirit is here now, watching for the one who he despised, _

_the one who made him in the night cried._

_He will warn the chosen with dreams of fright,_

_to help him fight the shadow who hated the light._

_He wishs to be once again with the three of his friends,_

_he wants to make his hatred and greed end._

_For if the four houses do not reunite we will crumble within." _

Harry just looked at Darien when he recited the words with confusion. But the gargoyle slowly smiled. "You are starting to understand, are you not?" He asked. Darien just looked at him. "I think so. But what does it mean, Golem? For if the four houses do not reunite, we will crumble within? Would Hogwarts be destroyed if Slytherin isn't reunited with Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff before the eclipse?"

Golem was quiet for a moment before he stood up on the wall and stretched his wings. "Come with me. There is something I must show you. I think this is the right time." he spoke in a low voice.

Darien and Harry glanced at one another before looking back at the gargoyle. "What is it?" The Auror asked.

The gargoyle only shook his head. "I must show you to explain it. Climb onto my back. Both of you." He told them as he flew up into the air and then leveled himself with the wall. Again Darien and Harry looked at one another before they climbed up onto the wall and onto the gargoyle's back. Darien sat in front of Harry, who put one arm around him and held onto the gargoyle's hard neck. "Hold on both of you." Golem told them. So Darien clutched the gargoyle's neck as did Harry.

And with a sudden drop, the gargoyle dove away from the castle wall. Darien had to hold his breath to keep himself from crying out. It was only ten feet away from the grounds did the gargoyle decide to spread out his wings and fly into the darkened sky.

Harry was grinning ear to ear from the sudden rush of flying. Other than the other night, he hadn't been able to fly on his broom, to feel the air whooshing past his ears. Darien couldn't help but smile as he felt the same rush. He had never flown before. His mother was always so terrified that he would fall if he tried to ride Buckbeak. And now that he was riding a gargoyle, he really liked it. It wasn't really something that his parents liked though. He remembered how terrified they both got when flying.

The gargoyle flew higher into the sky before he reached the cliff sides near the westside of the castle. He dove down making the two riders on his back have a major adrenaline rush. They fell half way down the cliffs before the gargoyle caught himself and made a circle around. It was too both Harry and Darien's surprise when they saw a very large cavern in the cliff side. There was a very narrow pathway that lead up into the forest and back to the cavern. Golem flew for the cavern, entering the darkness.

"It's so dark in here. How do we know the Umbra isn't hiding here?" Harry suddenly asked as they flew through the darkness.

"Do not fear, Young Potter. It may be dark here but he does not visit this place. It is actually a magical place where no evil darkness can stand." Golem spoke up as he continued to fly.

"How do you know that?" Darien asked with wonder.

The gargoyle didn't speak right off before the air started to slow. It was almost like he was starting to slow down to land. And when they felt a bump and he suddenly stopped, they knew that he had landed. "I just know. I have been around Hogwarts since the day it began building its stones on stones." He finally spoke.

Harry pulled out his wand and suddenly the tip illuminated, showing a very short distance from where they were. They could barely see stone walls surrounding them but there wasn't enough light to actually be sure.

"You were here when they started building?" Darien asked in wonder as he took out his own wand.

Golem lowered himself and let them climb off his back onto the unsteady rocky floor. "Aye, I was. But that was a long time ago." He told him.

Harry kept very close to Darien as they looked around, holding their wands high above their heads to see better. "It's too dark. I don't like it. How can we see anything if it's too dark?" The young Gryffindor asked, his voice quivering just a little.

Golem stood up straight, his wings folding onto his back. "You have your lightstone, do you not?"

Darien looked up at him before nodded. He reached into his robes and pulled out the stone. As always, when the darkness touched the stone, the lightstone began to glow brightly. But this time it was different. The stone glowed much brighter and suddenly lights began to shine throughout the cavern. Darien and Harry were astonished to see thousands of lightstones now starting to light up all around them. The lightstones were positioned on the walls, forming a large spiral throughout the cavern, going up and up until a very large light source flashed on. It was the biggest lightstone that Darien had ever seen. It was the size of a very large boulder. But it wasn't just all the lightstones that surprised Darien and Harry.

No, it was the room they were in.

The cavern was in a circle shape, yet it was much bigger than the Great Hall of Hogwarts. There were four very large stone pillars all around them. They were probably as wide as Hagrid was, maybe bigger. Yet one, seemed to be ready to crumble. It was missing several peices, which were scattered all around it. The others didn't look as bad but they were not that good either. And on each pillar were the crests of each Hogwarts house.

"What is this place, Golem?" Darien asked as he slid his wand away into his pocket. Harry was at his side, looking just as astonished.

Golem quickly walked after them before pausing to look up at the Gryffindor crest. "This is the Cavern of the Foundation Stones. Each pillar you see are the very first foundation stone pillars. They are what keeps the castle from falling into this cavern, keeps it from being destroyed. Each pillar represents the strength of Hogwarts." He paused. "They are the protection of the castle. Without these stone pillars, Hogwarts is not safe."

Harry looked at the crumbling stone pillar that possessed the crest of Slytherin. He stepped closer and looked at the aged symbol. "And this is the stone pillar of Slytherin?"

Golem nodded as he looked up at it. "Yes. Because of these stone pillars, the Umbra can not come here. Unfortunately, as you see, the Slytherin Foundation Pillar is weakening. It is because Slytherin is seperated from his friends. And without this stone pillar, the castle shall be destroyed."

Darien looked at him with wide eyes. "Can't someone just fix the stone pillar? It's made out of stone. All we have to do..."

Golem shook his head. "It's not that simple, young one." He said with a sigh. "There is only four that can restore them. And that is the Founders, themselves."

Harry shook his head as he turned and looked at the gargoyle. "But they're dead. How can they restore them if they're not alive anymore?"

The gargoyle only smiled at him. "The miracles of magic, Harry Potter. They are not gone as you may think. They are still upon this earth, travelling just like Slytherin is." He looked at Darien. "You must find them, Darien, and name them. You will know when you first see them. You have already named Slytherin when you first saw him. Therefore, he stays and helps you. But you must find the other three founders."

Darien just stared at him before slowly shaking his head. "How can I do that? How could I find Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff when they don't even live anymore?"

Golem only smiled at him before he stood directly in front of him, gazing into his multicolored eyes. "Darien Lupin, you will know when you find them. You will know what to do when you see them." He told the young Gryffindor. Darien just stared at him before he looked at the four pillars around him, pausing to look at the crumbling stone.

How could he do this? How could he find the three founders? And how would he know if he found them or not?


	25. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24.**

The very next day, during his History of Magic class, which was still taught by the boring Professor Binns, Darien told his friends about what he learned from Golem and as he expected, they sort of freaked out. He really hadn't expected anything else.

"How in the hell does that Golem guy expect you to find out where the other three Founders are?!" Lionel asked skeptically as they sat down in their chairs to get ready for class.

Darien just shook his head with a glum look on his face. "I don't know. Maybe they're just like Slytherin and they'll show up when I'm least expecting it. I just don't know. Harry's gonna to try and keep an eye out for any sign of them too." He said shaking his head. His friends just glanced at him as they took out their books. "Hey, Dari. Harry didn't tell your parents yet, has he?" Lionel asked. Darien just shook his head. "No. Not yet. We both kind of talked about it last night while he was taking me back to the Gryffindor Tower. He thinks it's a good idea if we didn't tell them just yet. He knows how my dad gets when stuff like this happens. Dad gets a little paranoid and mom really freaks. We both decided that it was probably a better idea if we told them later." He paused for an affect. "Most likely after this whole thing is over." His friends laughed.

During class, Darien could see Slytherin high above their heads in the rafters. He was pacing along the huge beams, looking like he was in deep thought. He also saw the raven sitting in the window sill, looking down at him. It was strange to Darien how the raven was the way she was. He didn't really understand that bird, though he liked her a lot. He was just wondering why she was always protecting him. He could only wonder.

After class, Darien was walking with his friends to lunch, talking about the lessons and everything when Rowena flew down and landed on his head for a second before taking off and taking a few hairs with her. "Ow!" Darien cried out, slapping the top of his head. "Rowena! What was that for?!" He said rubbing his head.

"Darien, are you all right?" Sam asked with a frown.

The young Gryffindor just rubbed his head while looking up at the raven, sitting on a windowsill. "Ow. Yeah, I'm all right. But why did she do that? That hurt." He grumbled. The raven cawed several times and pointing her beak towards the stairwells.

"You don't think she wants us to follow her again, do you?" Rex asked staring up at the large black bird.

Darien dropped his hand and shook his head. "I don't know. But I'm starving right now. I need to get some food." He said as he started walking towards the Great Hall. Again, the raven cawed loudly and swooped down, landing on his shoulder. She tapped the side of his head with her beak, making him wince again.  
"Rowena! What's wrong with you?" He asked rubbing where she pecked him.

The raven cawed and flapped her wings but Darien kept on walking towards the Great Hall, while his friends were being very hesitant. The large black bird finally dug her claws into his shoulder, making him wince a little before she reached down and grabbed the leather cord around his neck with the lightstone. Without a warning, she took off with the lightstone.

"Rowena!" Darien called after her as he turned around and gave chase.

Lionel, Rex, Sam and Leoni only glanced at one another before they hurried after their friend. The young students ran after the bird who flew into up the moving staircases. Darien just hurried after. "What is up with Rowena?! She's sure acting weird." Rex said rushing by his friend's side.

"Maybe she just likes the lightstone!" Leoni suggested. "Ravens like shiny objects."

Darien shook his head. "I don't know about that. There's something weird going on. She's never been interested in it before." He said as he went up the stairs. They suddenly stopped when the raven landed on a railing right in front of the Gryffindor Tower. She dropped the lightstone on the railing and held it down with her talon. Darien glanced over at his friends, frowning before he looked at the Fat Lady's portrait, who seemed to be staring back.

"Password?"

Darien slowly shook his head. He didn't know what to say. He just stared at the portrait before looking at Rowena with a frown. "Rowena, what is with you?" He said as he took the lightstone away from the raven and put it back around his neck.

"Rowena?"

Darien looked back at the Fat Lady, who was eyeing the raven suspiciously before she looked back at the young Gryffindor. "You have a very interesting bird there, you know that, boy?" She asked gently.

There was a very long silence as Darien stared up at the woman in the portrait. He knew his friends were staring too but they were probably staring at the bird or him. He couldn't help but just look at the Fat Lady, wondering something. His eyes then lit up as a flash like memory flew across his mind. He knew he had seen this woman once before. And it wasn't just because she was the guardian of the Gryffindor Tower.

"Wait a second." He paused stepping closer. "I know you."

"Ye-ah, Darien. What's going on with you now?" Sam asked skeptically.

Darien looked over at her before shaking his head and looking back up at the Fat Lady, who was staring back. "Who are you, Fat Lady?" He asked. The large but beautiful woman shook her head as she rose an eyebrow at the young Gryffindor. "I'm surprised, young Gryffndor. I have been guarding this door way for ages. Surely you should know who I am now. I am the Fat Lady." She said almost in an obvious tone.

"Dari, you're freaking us out now. What are you talking about?" Lionel asked.

Darien's eyes then widened as he remembered. "Oh my god. It's Helga Hufflepuff." He said as he just stared up at the Fat Lady.

There was a sudden flash of light, or at least that's what Darien saw. He was suddenly thrown into one of his visions, just like he did before. He was standing in a field where there were several people all around him. Right next to him he could see Salazar Slytherin. He was in a travelling cloak and he looked like he had just arrived himself. Next to him was standing Godric Gryffindor. The large wizard had a hand on Salazar's shoulder and was steering him through the crowd.

"Godric, what are we doing here again?" Slytherin asked lazily.

The large blonde just smiled at the dark haired wizard. "I told you three times already. I want you to meet a very good friend of mine. She has brought a friend, herself. Come, my friend."

Darien couldn't help but follow them. The two Founders walked through the crowd before stopping near a shop, where there were two women standing. Darien recognized both immediately as the other two Founders. But Helga Hufflepuff was much younger looking, just like she was in the portrait. The two turned around when they heard Gryffindor and Slytherin walk up. Darien's eyes were on the Hufflepuff though. She looked exactly like the Fat Lady.

"Ah, Godric. You have returned. Good." Hufflepuff said before looking at Slytherin. "Who is your friend?"

Godric Gryffindor clapped his large hand on Slytherin's shoulder and grinned. "This is Salazar Slytherin, friends. We just met a week ago. He saved my life. Salazar, allow me to introduce you to my friend, Helga Hufflepuff." He then looked at the beautiful Rowena Ravenclaw. "I see you have brought a friend as well, Helga."

Darien looked up at Slytherin who was staring at Ravenclaw with interest. The look on the Founder's face was almost too priceless. It was only a look that he knew too well because his father always looked at his mother like that. It was love at first sight. He looked at Rowena Ravenclaw who was smiling at Salazar Slytherin with the same interest. She was more forward though. She held out her hand first to Godric Gryffindor. "Greetings, Master Godric Gryffindor. I am Rowena Ravenclaw." She then held out her hand to Slytherin, who didn't take her hand. He just stared at her and it made the beautiful witch smile even more.

"Darien, are you all right?"

Darien's eyes blinked several times before he realized he was still staring at the Fat Lady. He shook his head then looked at who was shaking him. Lionel. He gave him a puzzled look. "Huh?"

Lionel rose his eyebrow at his slightly shorter friend. "I said, are you all right? You kind of spaced out there for a second." He said. Darien again shook his head before looking at the Fat Lady, who was staring right back at him. She was looking almost astonished, yet she was smiling. "You're one of the Founders. You're Helga Hufflepuff, aren't you?"

Darien's friends just frowned. "Darien, are you feeling all right? You really aren't making much sense. How could this be Helga Hufflepuff? She's guarding the Gryffindor House." Lionel said skeptically.

"I guard it because I was asked to, young man. By Godric Gryffindor. He knew that the chosen student would have been a Gryffindor student that reunite us." The Fat Lady said.

The students all just stared at the woman with wide eyes. "Are you kidding me? You're really Helga Hufflepuff?" Sam asked with surprise.

The Fat Lady just smiled at them before nodding. "The boy speaks true. I am Helga Hufflepuff, one of the Four Founders of Hogwarts. I am not just a portrait as you see. But a spirit within the portrait." She looked at Darien. "It's strange though. I hadn't been expecting a first year to be the one."

Darien and his friends looked at one another with confusion. None of them knew what she had been talking about. "The one?" Sam asked.

Lionel nodded. "What do you mean the one?"

The Fat Lady just shook her head as she looked Darien over. "It was said a long time ago that someday a Hogwarts student would bring the Hogwarts Founders back together and once again the magical barriers will forever be strong. The prophecy of this student also said that during that time, the gateway to the Otherworld will open up allowing dark spirits to escape their prison. If that would have happened, the world would be consumed in Darkness. It would be the Dark Ages all over again. But the Hogwarts student, if he shall bring the Founders together in time, light will prevail." She then smiled as he looked Darien over again. "You are strong for a young one, I can see that. I have been watching you lately. And I certaintly know what has been going on in the castle."

"Why didn't you say anything that you were Helga Hufflepuff from the beginning?" Rex asked in curiousity.

The Fat Lady only softly laughed as she fanned herself with the fan in her hand. "You did not ask. No one had. It was also an agreement that I had with Godric Gryffindor and Rowena Ravenclaw. Once Salazar Slytherin had left us. We decided that no one would know our true identies until someone came along and named us. And now I have been named by the chosen student that shall reunite the Houses." She said gently.

"I still don't get it." Darien said shaking his head and rubbing the side of it. "How did Rowena know that you were Helga Hufflepuff? She seems to know a lot too. She can see Slytherin's ghost like I can. She protects me from the Umbra whenever he comes around. I just don't get it."

The Fat Lady only smiled but then shook her head as she turned her kind eyes onto the raven, who was looking right at her. The giant bird even flapped her wings a little as if trying to tell her something. "Young Darien Lupin, your bird there is not just an ordinary bird. She is something else. But only you can discover her secrets. I can not tell you anything what you must discover for yourself." She shook her head again as she looked at Darien's multicolored ones. "It is only for you."

"Can I ask you something, Ms. Hufflepuff?" Leoni asked suddenly.

Everyone looked at her but then back at the portrait. The Fat Lady just nodded with a kind smile. "Of course, my dear, you may ask me something. Ask anything."

Leoni nodded before she looked at the raven, who now hopped onto Darien's shoulder. "Was Rowena animagus? Rowena Ravenclaw I mean." She asked. That seemed to perk up everyone's attention.

"Of course she was. We all were." The Fat Lady spoke up. "It was not recorded though. The recordings of Animagus was not written until several hundred years after our time. When the Ministry of Magic was starting to develope and grow bigger."

"If you were Animagus, what were you?" Sam asked with interest.

The Fat Lady just smiled. "I was what is the head of my house, young lady. A badger." She said with a gentle smile. "As for the others, they were just the same as I. We were the animals of our Houses."

Darien's eyes lit up as he thought about it. "Slytherin was a snake."

"Yes. Actually an Anaconda if we must be more specific. He favored Anacodas from their powerness, strength and haste."

"Gryffindor was a lion?" Rex asked.

Again a nod. "Yes. For a lion he was like." The Fat Lady said. "He was brave, noble, strong willed and very powerful."

Darien slowly looked at Rowena on his shoulder, meeting her eyes. "And Rowena was a raven. A raven for intelligence."

A very sly smile appeared on the Fat Lady's face as she slowly nodded. "Yes. But that wasn't the only reason why Rowena chose the raven to be her Animagus. It is the traits that all ravens carry. Intelligence is definitely one of their highest traits. They are one of the most cunning animals you may ever find. And Rowena was the most cunning of us, Four Founders. But it was also the loyalty that ravens had for their partners, their mates. And even for their younglings. Ravens mate for life, young ones. They are also playful when they want to be. And they have pure innocence, yet trickery." The Fat Lady's eyes slowly turned onto the raven. "Much like your friend there, Darien. Rowena."

There was a long silence as all eyes turned onto the raven, which was still looking into Darien's eyes, who just stared back. "Darien, you don't think..." Rex was asking.

Darien finally broke eye contact with his raven before shaking his head. "No. She's not Rowena Ravenclaw." He said before looking back at Rowena. "She's just Rowena. Come on, guys. We need to get down to lunch." He turned and walked back down the stairs.

The others just looked at one another before waving at the Fat Lady. "See you 'round, Ms. Hufflepuff." Sam said. The Fat Lady only waved, still smiling. "Stop and visit me sometime, young ones. I would love to talk to you some more." She called after them before she turned and started to have a conversation with neighboring portrait.

Later in the evening, while it was still day light and slightly snowing, since it was still early spring, Darien was sitting in an empty corridor, though he was pretty sure that there was an Auror lurking about close by. He was staring out the window in the direction where Rowena Ravenclaw's cabin was hidden. His thoughts roaming onto what was happening. He even looked up at how close the moon and sun was getting. Only a few more days till the Eclipse. They were getting so much closer to one another. It was no doubt that the Eclipse was going to be on St. Patrick's Day.

"Rowena, what am I going to do? That's the day when the Umbra is going to be free to do anything he wants. He's going to come after me and I can't do anything about it. I'm not ready to face him." Darien whispered to the raven perched on his knee. "He's going to kill me and then he's going to make it dark for a long time. And release all of those Dark Lords from the past. Voldemort, maybe his old master, Beliar De Diablo. And I don't want to how he was like."

The raven looked up at him from cleaning her feathers, meeting his eyes. Darien just stared into her own deep blue eyes with his multicolored ones before he tilted his head in wonder.

"Rowena, why do you care about me? Who are you really?" He whispered before bending his face a little closer to his raven. "Are you Rowena Ravenclaw?"

There was a very long silence before Darien laughed at himself shaking his head. "No. You can't be. I've already met her in her portrait. That has to be her." He frowned again looking back at the raven. He then remembered what the Rowena from the portrait had said. She had told him that she was only a memory of her true self. "Are you...?" He paused. "...Rowena Ravenclaw?"  
The raven suddenly tilted her head before she took off into the air, flying over to the middle of the corridor and hovering in the air, flapping her wings to keep her airborne.

Darien only watched before his eyes slowly lit up as he saw light suddenly surround the bird. "You are! You are Rowena Ravenclaw!" He said in a quiet but excited tone.

There was a flash of light and soft blue sparks was falling all around the beautiful woman standing before him. Her eyes were closed before she gently opened them, revealing her sapphire blue eyes. She was wearing a midnight blue gown with grey trimming. Her raven black hair fell down to her waist, looking so soft like feathers or spider threads. She even had long black eye lashes that flickered every time she blinked. It was indeed Rowena Ravenclaw and she was smiling.

"You have named me, Darien. And for that I thank you."

Darien just stared at the beautiful witch standing before him with his mouth wide open. He slowly began to stand up and step closer to her, his eyes looking her over. The witch just smiled as she watched him starting to circle her, looking her over. She even turned a little as he went around her before turning the other way to look at him. Finally Darien stood before her, looking in her deep blue eyes.

"You...you're..."

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded as she smiled at him. "Yes. I am Rowena Ravenclaw. The one and only."

Darien just stared at her before stepping back, feeling a little dizzy. He closed his eyes for a second before reopening them. He was startled to see that he had been thrown back into another vision. Actually it was the same one that he had seen before earlier in the day.

"Greetings, Master Godric Gryffindor. I am Rowena Ravenclaw." Rowena Ravenclaw in the vision spoke up before she held out her hand to Slytherin, who didn't take her hand. He just stared at her and it made the beautiful witch smile even more. "You are quite the shy one, are you not?" She asked in a teasing way.

Salazar Slytherin suddenly shook his head to get out of his thoughts. He then reached out and took her hand, kissing the back of it gently. "Nay, my lady. I am just surprised by your beauty."

That made the other three Founders smile, Gryffindor actually laughed before clapping his hand onto Slytherin's shoulder, making him glance at him while dropping Rowena's hand. "Ah, love at first sight, I see. How lovely." The large blonde Founder said in a joking way. Slytherin just glared at him for that.

Rowena and Helga both laughed softly with their hands over their mouths. The raven haired beauty gently slapped Godric Gryffindor's arm though. "Master Gryffindor, it is not nice to tease our friend. I am actually used to such reactions from men. Sometimes it is a curse to be what I am." She said shaking her head. Slytherin shook his head slowly as he met the beauty's eyes, who gave him a very gentle smile.

Suddenly the vision changed into a new one. It was a dark night with only a **full moon** as the light. The stars were shining brightly and it was such a warm night. Darien could see both Salazar Slytherin and Rowena Ravenclaw standing together on a bridge, looking towards the building of Hogwarts. It was still in work but by half way. The two founders were quiet as they just stared before Rowena turned her face towards Slytherin.

"My dear Salazar, you have asked me to walk with you. Must we just walk and not speak?"

Slytherin turned his dark eyes onto her before looking away and they began to walk together across the bridge. Darien followed behind, just to stay close. "I do not know what to say. What shall we talk about?"

The lovely witch next to him, shrugged innocently as she grabbed a hold of her dress and swished the fabric back and forth a little. "I don't know. What is on your mind? Say anything." The wizard didn't say anything and she giggled. "Tell me that you're in love with me, my lovely Slytherin." Rowena Ravenclaw teased.

Darien could have laughed at the look on Slytherin's face. For he had yet to see him blush. And that was what he was doing now. Slytherin's face had gone a shade of pink as he looked wide eyed at the lovely and playful witch next to him. Ravenclaw only giggled softly as she gently touched his shoulder. "Oh, I am only teasing you, Salazar. You need not to blush as red as a rose."

"I am not blushing." Slytherin said indignitely.

"If you are not blushing, my friend, then my eyes must decieve me. For you are as red as a spring robin's breast." She teased again.

Slytherin scowled, though Darien wasn't sure if he was scowling at himself or her. Rowena Ravenclaw seemed to think the same thing because she touched her ruby colored lips with a faint look of surprise. "Oh. You are angry with me. Forgive me, Salazar. I was only playing. I didn't mean anger you." She said gently.

"No." Slytherin suddenly said as he faced her, his eyes looking right into hers. "I am not angry with you. I am angry with myself. I try as all I can to not express my emotions but it is hard with you around. I can not explain it. There is something about you that makes me want to be someone else that I am not."

The beauty gave him a very soft smile as she looked up at him. "For some reason, Salazar, I feel like you are trying to flatter me. Trouble is, it is working." She said as she gently took his hand.

Slytherin looked surprised that she would take his hand but he still looked into her eyes. He couldn't seem to find his words. He was trying to think of something to say and Darien knew that. But he didn't seem to need to say anything. Because Rowena Ravenclaw gave him another gentle smile before touching his lips with one finger.

"You need not to say anything, Salazar. I may be smart in many things. But the thing I do know the most, is people and their expressions." She whispered to him before lowering her hand. "If you wish to kiss me, then do so. For I wish the same."

There was a short pause before Salazar Slytherin actually smiled before he gently cupped Ravenclaw's small chin and lifted her face towards his. He bent down and kissed her.

Darien, however, pulled a face and crinkled his nose. "Ew. This is too mushy." He muttered. Then he heard a giggle before the vision suddenly vanished and he was standing right back in front of Rowena Ravenclaw in the halls of Hogwarts.

"You will not say that when it comes of the time for you to court a lovely lady, Young Darien Lupin." The beautiful witch said in a gentle voice.

Darien shook his head as he looked around at the halls before he looked right at Rowena Ravenclaw. He frowned for a second before tilting his head. "So you've been watching over me all this time? You were really the raven?"

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded gently as she stepped a little closer. "Yes, Darien. I have been protecting you as much as I can."

Darien slowly shook his head as he just continued to stare into her eyes. There was something about her eyes. They were so enchanting. The blue of them was a blue he had never seen. They were almost like jewels. He was finding that he couldn't look away from them. "But why? Why protect me?"

"Darien, that is a question that is very simple to answer." Ravenclaw told him gently. "You are one of my students. This castle, this school..." She paused looking around at the walls. "...Hogwarts is suppose to be a very safe place for children. We built it to keep our children safe from any danger." She looked right back into Darien's multicolored eyes. "But now the barriers that protects this place has been broken. And it is time to fix that. With your help."

Darien just frowned as he just looked at her. "But why me? I'm just a boy."

A very faint smile appeared on Rowena's face as she just looked at him. "You would be surprised on what one young boy could do, Darien. Think of your friend, Harry Potter. Look what he has accomplished ever since he was much younger than you are. He was a baby and yet he destroyed the power of an evil wizard. Just like what happened to the dark wizard, Beliar De Diablo many, many years before."

Again, Darien frowned as he looked as curious as could be. "...How did he fall anyway? The book that we read didn't say."

"And it wouldn't. Not many would know. It wasn't really recorded on paper. Only on the minds of those who were there and shared the stories. Though the stories began to get twisted and no one knew the real truths." Rowena said as she shook her head.

"But do you know?" Darien asked.

The beautiful witch was quiet and very still for a long time before she nodded. "He was betrayed, Darien. By one of his followers. A dark wizard that decided that what the Dark Lord was doing was not right for the Magical world. He lead his master into a corner where he could not back out of and his power was destroyed as was he." She spoke very softly.

"Who was that wizard?" The young Gryffindor asked.

Another long silence before Rowena Ravenclaw lift her head higher. "Seye Slytherin. The father of Salazar."

Darien's eyes lit up with surprise when he heard that. He even stepped back from the surprise. "Seye Slytherin?" He asked. Rowena nodded with a smile. "Yes. Seye Slytherin used the Negatus Mysterium against his master before somehow calling upon the spirits of De Diablo's victims. They did exactly what had happened to Lord Voldemort years ago." The Hogwarts Founder told him. "But he did have help. He could not do it alone."

"Who helped him?" Darien asked.

"The Great Wizard Merlin himself. It was of the year of Merlin's great power started to be known throughout the world. Beliar De Diablo was an great enemy of the powerful wizard. So when Seye Slytherin went to him, asking him for help in defeating his master, he helped him."

Darien tilted his head. "But how did it happen?"

"The Esuna Mithra spell was what he used against De Diablo." Rowena told him. "Only he did it in a different way. He called Esuna Mega Mithras. Those are the words to call upon many spirts."

Darien looked away, turning a little away from her. "And Umbra?"

Rowena Ravenclaw shook her head as she folded her hands together. "He was one of De Diablo's trusted men. When the dark lord fell, he lost everything. His powers, his way of life, and now he's trying to gain it again. You must be careful, Darien. You have a power that has been ancient for a very long time. How it was passed into you, I do not know. There are only a few reasons to answer that. But I can not answer that."

Another long silence before Darien looked up into her eyes. "Rowena, uh...I mean..." He was cut of with Rowena's hand gently touching his lips.

"You may continue to call me Rowena for that is my name, Darien. I will still serve you as your pet raven. I have made a promise to myself that I would do anything to help Salazar in anyway I can. And to do that, I must help you." Rowena said with a smile before she lowered her hand.

Darien just nodded. "Okay. Well...do you really think I could do this? Save the world like Harry did?"

Rowena Ravenclaw only smiled at him before she gently took his hand and lead him towards the window. They both then looked out together in silence. "Look around you, Darien. This school is full of children. Children who are destined to do something. Great things. Our world that will be lead to greatness always starts with children." She looked back at him. "You are one of those children. And it starts now. What you do for your future, is up to you. And I will be by yourself, helping you as much I can. I will protect you. And you must help us, the Founders of Hogwarts reunite so we can restore the protection of Hogwarts. Once the protection is here, no evil shall hurt you or the other students. That I can promise."

Darien only smiled at her. "Thanks, Rowena."

With only another smile at him, light surrounded her once again and she was the raven again. The raven rubbed her head against his arm.

Hours after meeting the real Rowena Ravenclaw, Darien was heading back to the dorms after dinner. He had left a little earlier than he was suppose to, but no one seemed to mind. His friends were staying a little longer to finish their pumpkin pastries and they promised that they would soon join him. Darien didn't mind though. There was plenty of Aurors in the hallways so it wasn't entirely dangerous. And it wasn't like the Umbra was on the grounds. The gargoyles were keeping watch for him and there hadn't been any commotion yet. So it was clear that it was going to be a quiet night.

"Darien."

Darien turned around when he heard his father call after him. Remus just gave his son a faint smile as he walked over to join him. He reached over and gently touched Darien's shoulder. "I'll walk with you, Darien. I wanted to talk to you about something anyway."

The two made their way up the stairs, walking side by side. "Darien, I have to warn you about something." Remus said as he climbed the stairs. "As you know, tomorrow is going to be the eclipse." He earned a nod from Darien. "Well, what you don't know yet, Darien, is that when the moon and sun alines, the moon is going to be full and it will get dark. When that happens, we might just transform." Remus told him, pulling a face.

Darien groaned. "Oh, great. That's just all I need. To be a blood thirsty dog during the day."

Remus laughed softly as he shook his head. "Hey. You are not blood thirsty, Darien. And I'm not entirely sure that you might transform or not. I know that when someone who was bit by a werewolf changes during the eclipse. But someone who was born a werewolf," He shook his head again. "I'm not sure. Professor Dumbledore believes that the full moon may not even effect you. But just to be sure, you're to come with me to the shack on the grounds. Just for percautions." He told him.

Darien just nodded. "Okay." He then looked away, sighing.

"What's wrong?" Remus asked looking down at him. Darien just shook his head as he thought about what he still needed to do. He knew that he still had to find out where Godric Gryffindor was. He had already found out who Helga Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw were, but there was still the last Founder.

"Darien." Remus said touching Darien's shoulder.

The young Gryffindor looked up at him before shaking his head. "It's nothing, dad. It's just..." He paused knowing that he had to tell him. "I had a talk with the gargoyle leader, Golem, the other night. Don't worry. Harry was with me." He said quickly when he saw Remus frown.

Remus shook his head. "That's not what I'm thinking. What did you talk to him about?"

Darien shrugged as he stopped walking and went to an open window. "I...I kind of asked him what would happen to the gargoyles during the eclipse. He said that it's still day and not night. The gargoyles are not going to be able to fight the Umbra if it comes tomorrow. He's going to come after me. I know it."

Remus just stared at his son with sympathy before he gently touched his shoulder. "Darien, I will never let him hurt you. I promise you that." He told him.

"I know." Darien said before looking at him. "It's not just that, Dad, that bothers me. Golem took me and Harry to a secret cavern that's in the side of the cliffs. The cavern leads right under the castle where there are these stone pillars that's holding Hogwarts up and keeping it from falling through the ground." He explained. "Four of them. And each of them have the crest of the Founders. But one of them is falling apart. Golem told me that they're the Foundation stones of Hogwarts."

Remus just frowned as he continued to listen but he nodded. He had actually heard about the Foundation Stones. He just didn't know where they were. "I see. What else?" He asked gently.

Darien shrugged again. "Golem said that the Foundation Stones are what is protecting Hogwarts, dad. The Pillar of Slytherin is falling apart because he broke away from his friends. Remember the line in the Sorting Hat's song? For if the Four Houses don't reunite, we will crumble within?" He recieved a nod from his father. "That's what the Sorting hat was trying to warn everyone about. The castle is going to fall through the ground if Slytherin isn't reunited with Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff." Remus only frowned at the sound of that. Darien slowly shook his head. "Golem told me that I was the chosen student to reunite the four houses." He told him.

"What?" Remus asked in confusion. "You? But you're just a child, Darien. You're eleven years old."

Darien nodded as he faintly smiled up at him. "I know. But it's actually kind of simple, yet hard. Golem told me that I was suppose to find the Founders and name them. They were somewhere in the castle, dad. I found Helga Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw."

This surprised Remus. He even stepped back, just staring at Darien. His mouth had fallen open to an O but he still said nothing. He was quiet for a long time before he tilted his head. "You...you found them?"

Darien nodded with a smile. "Yeah, dad. I found them. Helga Hufflepuff is the Fat Lady guarding the Gryffindor Tower. And Rowena Ravenclaw is actually Rowena. My raven. She was protecting me all this time."

Remus just stared at him for a long time before he smiled right back. "And what about Godric Gryffindor?" He asked with interest.

Darien shrugged. "I have my suspicions. I think..." He paused looking out the window. "I think he's...Golem the Gargoyle. Yeah. He's Godric Gryffindor." He didn't look up to see if what Remus's reaction could have been. He just stared out at the starlit sky. "I'm trying to decide if I should go talk to Golem again. Ask him if he really is Godric Gryffindor."

Remus frowned as he looked out the window. "Did Golem tell you what would happen if you reunited the Four Founders?"

Darien nodded with a big smile. "Yeah! He said that if I reunited the Four Founders then everything would be okay. The Four Foundation Stones would be restored and they can stop the Gateway to the Otherworld from opening." he told him. Remus only slyly smiled right back at him. "Then we must do what we can, Darien."

"Darien! There you are! You know you're not..." Darien heard a very familiar voice. In fact it was so familiar that the very sound of it made him stiffen and slowly turn around to look to see who it was. His eyes widened very wide when he saw his father, Remus Lupin coming towards him. "Oh, hello, Caligo. Thank you for walking with Darien back to the Gryffindor Tower." Remus said smiling as he walked over.

"No problem, Remus."

Darien jerked his head, looking wide eyed up at his Divination Professor standing beside him. The Professor was smiling unusually at him, his eyebrow raised at him. Remus frowned seeing how pale his son's face had just gone the very second he had seen him. "Darien, what's wrong?"

The young Gryffindor slowly began to back away as he stared wided eyed up at Professor Caligo, who now had his wand out. "D-dad, help..." He stammered.

Remus just frowned before he looked straight at Professor Caligo, who turned to face him. "Caligo, what are you..." His own eyes widened when the Divination Professor raised his wand. He never even had a chance to grab his own to protect himself.

"Sectumsempra!" Caligo said very casually as if he didn't need to think twice about what spell he was going to use.

To Darien's horror, two very large gashs split right across his father's face, sending blood immediately running down his face. Another gash seemed to split across Remus's chest because blood was now seeping through his white shirt. "No!" Darien cried out as he started forward to run to his father's side. But a hand slapped against the back of his head, gripping his hair and then he felt himself flung against the wall. All was black before he even hit the ground.


	26. Chapter 25

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews guys., Now in this chapter, it's not about what happens to Darien. It's about what's going to happen and what happens at Hogwarts after he's discovered being missing. You may find it very interesting in what will happen. Not to mention, the looooong awaited reunion.**

**Chapter 25.**

It had been Sirius who found Remus in the corridor. He had been leading most of the Gryffindors back to the Gryffindor Tower, under orders of Dumbledore. The Headmaster had wanted to take extra percautions, especially at night. So several Aurors and some of the Professors lead students to the Towers. Sirius had been laughing with some of the students about a joke that he just told before turning the corner that lead towards the stair to the Gryffindor Tower. And when he looked forward to see where he was going, he stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes immediately grew wide at seeing the body on the ground, lying in a pool of blood. He didn't even hear the students start screaming. It had been like he had gone deaf the very second he saw Remus.

"Oh no!" Sirius cried out before running over to Remus. "Remus!" He yelled out at the top of his lungs.

The Gryffindor Students were still screaming with shock and fear. And that brought Aurors running to investigate. Sirius was already at Remus's side, looking him over and checking to see if he had a pulse. His face had gone very pale as he looked at his best friend.

"Oh no!" He heard someone yell out before he looked up just to see some of the Aurors there, including Harry and Ron. They were looking Remus over with wide eyes. "Oh god! Sirius, is he alive?!" Harry exclaimed as he quickly bent down to one knee. Sirius shook his head, his eyes getting incredibly wet from emotion. "I don't know!" He jerked around. "Someone get Madam Pomfrey now! Find Dumblefore! Alert everyone now!" Someone was off in a sprint as soon as the words were out of Sirius's mouth.

Sirius turned his attention back onto Remus's body, looking for a pulse. He was shaking terribly. "What happened to him, Sirius?! How did he get like this?!" Ron asked as he stared at Remus.

"I don't know! We just found him like this!" Sirius said as he found a pulse. "Well, he's still alive, but very weak! We've got to get him some medical attention now!"

Harry nodded as he pulled out his wand. "It looked like someone took a knife to him!" His eyes laid on Remus's wand resting on the floor. "He's been dueling with someone or at least tried." He said pointing at the wand.

"Oh no. And that's not the half of it." Ron suddenly spoke up as he bent down by the wall and picked something up. Something glowing white. Harry and Sirius turned their eyes onto the object and froze. "That's..." The young Auror cut himself off with a sharp breath.

"That's Darien's lightstone!" Sirius said quickly getting to his feet. He quickly went to the window and looked down to see if Darien might have fallen out the window. But there was no sign of him. "Darien!" Sirius called as he jerked around, looking for him.

"Sirius, what is..."

Everyone looked to see Dumbledore and some of the other Professors. It had been Dumbledore who had been speaking. But the very second they saw Remus on the ground, they all gasped or froze.

"Oh god!" McGonagall cried out as she looked at him.

Dumbledore hurried over to examine Remus. "What happened?!" He asked rather seriously.

Sirius shook his head as he leaned against the wall, trembling terribly. "We found him here, Albus. He's still alive but just barely. But that's not the half of it. Darien's missing."

Dumbledore's head gave a sharp jerk as he looked at him. He was quiet for a long minute before he looked around at the Professors and Aurors. "Everyone, search the castle right now! All students go to their Houses and no one is to leave." His eyes paused on four particular students who looked very pale and the girls were already crying at the sight of their Professor.

Rex, Lionel, Sam and Leoni had heard what had just been said. They looked at each other with shock and pain. To even think that Darien was missing and his father was probably dying, it was very, very bad.

"You four, go to your dorms." Dumbledore told them as gently as he could. The four just looked at one another before nodding and starting to walk with one another. Sirius was still by Remus's side. "Who did this? And what did they do to him?"

"It is the Sectumsempra curse. One of the Dark Arts." Someone said.

Everyone turned to see Snape limping towards them, using a cane to walk straight. He was walking with Shacklebolt and Hagrid, who both looked very alarmed to see Remus on the ground.

"Severus, thank goodness you're back. I would ask how you are doing but this is a very bad time." Dumbledore said shaking his head with a sigh. Snape only nodded as he pulled out his wand and bent down to one knee as best as he could. "I can tell." He said with a drawl before he let his wand tip run over the gashs of Remus's wounds. The slashs began to seal up and stopping the bleeding. "Albus, you may find great interest in what Severus has to say." Shacklebolt said very gravely.

Harry and Sirius stood up, their eyes on Snape, who stood up, yet very wobbly. "What is it, Kingsley?" Dumbledore asked before he turned his eyes onto Snape.

The Potions Master shook his head as he put his wand away. "This isn't a great time to tell you but it was Caligo who attacked me that night. He came to the Greenhouse and stabbed me from behind." Snape said.

There were several gasps from some of the Professors, while Dumbledore stared at him. "Are you sure, Severus?"

Snape only nodded, looking very teed off as he had said Caligo's name. "Yes. I remember it was him. He told me to never interfer with his business again. I believe it has something to do with Darien Lupin but I'm not sure. I believe he has been meeting with him but I'm not sure what reason."

"He was teaching him early Divination." A very timid voice broke out.

Everyone looked to see Rex standing at the corner with Lionel, Sam and Leoni. They were all looking very pale. In Rex's hands was Slytherin's journal. They had heard everything. All Professors and Aurors just stared at the four, who looking very worried. Standing behind them was Draco Malfoy, looking very forlorn as he could. Rowena the raven was perched on a suit of armor.

"What did you say, young Kegerreis?" Dumbledore asked as he stepped forward.

Rex sniffed a little as if he was trying to hold back tears but he stepped forward, holding out the journal. Dumbledore reached over and took the book, frowning a little. "I said Darien was taking secret Divination Classes with Professor Caligo. He didn't want anyone to know because of his parents. We knew though. We didn't tell anyone because we promised that we wouldn't. When Darien decided not to do the lessons anymore, Professor Caligo wasn't happy. Darien said that it was because of Slytherin. Slytherin didn't like it. He didn't trust Professor Caligo." The tiny Gryffindor told the Headmaster.

There was a long silence. Dumbledore looked down at the book in his hands. "And what is this?"

Harry shook his head as he recognized the book right away. "That's Salazar Slytherin's journal. Ron and I got it for Darien when he asked for it." He said. Dumbledore only looked at him before his eyes lit up. "We must go search the Divination Tower immediately. If Professor Caligo is truly at fault here, he may have done this to Remus."

Sirius gritted his teeth. "And he might have Darien! He must be working for the Umbra." He growled.

"No. He's not working for the Umbra." Draco said shaking his head as he stepped past the students. "He is the Umbra. Or at least being possessed by him." Everyone just stared at him with bewilderment, yet there was plenty of fear in their eyes.

"How do you know that, Malfoy?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing a little.

Draco sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm not sure. I don't know how it came to me. All I know is that I was just asleep a while ago and I dreamed about talking to Darien. It was like I was still in the coma and he was talking to me. I remember telling him about the Umbra. And then someone talked to me while I was sleeping." He looked very serious about. "It was Salazar Slytherin. He talked to me in my sleep. He told me who he was and what he knew. I don't know if it's true but I get the feeling that it really was him." He glanced off to the side at the raven, who was staring at a blank space by the window. "That bird of Darien's, I think she can see Salazar Slytherin's ghost. She kept circling this blank spot as if someone was there."

Dumbledore slowly looked around. "If Caligo is truly the Umbra, then Darien is danger. We must find him now. But first," He looked down at Remus. "Remus needs immediate medical attention. I will take him to the Infirmary right away. Everyone start searching the castle for Darien or Caligo." He looked at Harry. "Harry, the Chamber of Secrets must be searched."

Harry just nodded with a stern frown. "I understand. I'll take a team down there right away and we will search the entire chamber."  
Dumbledore nodded before looking at the four students. "Thank you for telling me about the lessons. But I actually already knew about them. I won't say how but I did. Now you four, go back to your Houses and try to get some rest. You will need it."

Everyone immediately set out, while the four friends walked together, with the raven flying above them. Sam and Leoni were crying silently. They were scared for Darien. They were scared for Professor Lupin. And they were scared about everyone. Rex and Lionel were just as scared and they had come very close to tearing up theirselves.

"We got to do something, guys." Lionel suddenly spoke.

Everyone looked at him. "Yeah? But what can we do, Lionel?" Sam asked folding her arms. "We don't know where Darien is. We don't know where the Umbra took him. The only thing that we do know is somehow the Umbra managed to trick the gargoyles and possessed the Divination Professor. But how? How did he do it?"

Leoni shook her head as she looked at them. "It's not possible, Sam. They would have seen him if he came back."

Rex shrugged as he thought of something. "Not if he shapeshifted. He's a shapeshifter and shift into anyone or anything. He could have shifted into something very small and flew right past them."

Lionel nodded agreement. "Yeah. He's right. Thing is, he could have been Professor Caligo all along. Darien told us that Salazar Slytherin never trusted him, even before the attack on us days ago. So that must have been saying something." He told everyone.

Just then, the raven dropped down, landing on the floor before they could get to the stairs. All four looked over to see Rowena just standing there, facing them. "Huh? What's with Rowena?" Sam asked as she started forward. She stopped though when a shadow flew over them and they looked up to see the gargoyle, Golem crawling through one of the large windows and he flew downward, landing before the four. His amber colored eyes looking them over.  
"We have heard what you said, younglings and we agree." The gargoyle said as he stood before them.

Before anyone of the students could say a word, a golden aura seemed to wrap around the gargoyle and his griffin look melted away, revealing a large man that Rex and Lionel recognized.

"Gryffindor!" They both gasped.

Godric Gryffindor nodded as he turned his eyes onto them. "Yes. It is me. Darien has named me, though not directly to me as he did with Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw." He said motioning to the portrait where the Fat Lady was sitting and to Rowena the raven who suddenly transformed right before everyone's eyes. All four just gawked with shock at her, but she smiled with a nod.

"So you were Rowena all this time?" Sam asked with surprise.

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded again. "Yes. I was. Darien named me earlier today when he was alone."

"And he named me when he was with Caligo." Gryffindor said as he lift his head higher. "But that is not what we should speak about now. The fact is, Umbra has Darien. And he will kill him if we don't find out where he took him. Darien must be at the eclipse tomorrow."

All four friends looked at one another before Lionel stepped forward. "Do you know where he took him?" He asked hopefully.

Gryffindor sighed and shook his head. "Alas, I do not. But I believe Salazar Slytherin might. Thing is, we do not know where to find him."

Rex frowned before he looked around. "Slytherin." He suddenly said. Everyone looked at him. "Salazar Slytherin. We need you." Rex said again.

"Rex, what are you doing? You can't talk to Slytherin. You can't even see him." Leoni said shaking her head.

The Little Gryffindor looked up at her frowning. "I don't care. Ravenclaw's portrait told Darien that if he called to Slytherin, he would come to him. I don't see why it wouldnt' be the same for us." He told his friends. Lionel shook his head. "I do. We don't have the power that Darien has."

"And yet, he still comes when you call." Gryffindor said smiling as he was looking right behind the four.

The Four Hogwarts students frowned in confusion before they turned around to see what he was looking at. Of course, they couldn't see Slytherin like they could. But he was there. Salazar Slytherin had heard Rex's call and had come to see what they wanted with him.  
Slytherin, however, stopped hovering towards them when he saw his old friends, standing before them. His eyes lit up with surprise but he still said nothing. He looked from Gryffindor to Ravenclaw then to Hufflepuff before looking back at Ravenclaw, who smiled. "Hello, Salazar." She said very softly.

The four students stepped away, looking from Ravenclaw to the blank spot where she was looking. They knew that Slytherin must have been there, but the could not see him.

"Rowena?" Slytherin said before looking at Gryffindor. "Godric? Helga?" He frowned. "What...how are you here?"

All three friends looked at one another before looking at him. "We've been here for a very long time, Salazar. Watching you wander the halls alone." Helga Hufflepuff said very softly as she suddenly stepped right out of her portrait and stood next to Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.

"We stayed behind like you did, Salazar." Gryffindor spoke up with a smile.

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded as she stepped closer, looking deeply into his dark eyes. "We forgive you for what happened thousands of years ago, Salazar. We know you were just confused because of Umbra's poisonous words that burned your heart." She said very softly. "And we've stayed in Hogwarts to be with you. So that you wouldn't be alone."

Slytherin just stared at her before his face softened, still not smiling. "To be with me? But why? All of the harsh words I had said to you. What I called you."

Rowena shook her head as she held out her hand towards him. "I forgive you, Salazar. I want to be with you because I love you."

Both Lionel and Rex pulled disgusted faces while Sam and Leoni cooed. "Oh, that's so romantic." Leoni said her hands folded under her chin.

"Ugh. That's so mushy." Lionel grumbled.

Everyone laughed, even Slytherin as he took Rowena's hand and held it. "I will always love you too, Rowena." And the four students actually heard his voice as a green glow began to form around Slytherin's ghost and he suddenly appeared before their eyes, making all four stare wide eyed up at him.

"Holy...so you were really there." Lionel said with surprise.

Slytherin turned to look at him before he looked down at himself. He was no longer transparent. He was solid, just like his friends.

"The Four Houses of Hogwarts has been reunited." Gryffindor said smiling.

Lionel and Rex looked at one another. "Does that mean Darien will be okay? That he's safe?" The little Gryffindor asked, earning a very surprised look from Slytherin. "What? What about Lupin?" The grumpy ghost asked before looking around. Now that he actually paid attention, Darien had not been the one who called him and he was not around. "Where is the boy?"

Rowena sighed as she wrapped her arms around herself. "Caligo Umbra has taken him, Salazar. He has hurt Remus Lupin terribly as well."

Slytheirn cursed angrily as he began to pace. "Damn that demon!" He hissed. "I should have never brought him here to the castle those many years ago! This is all my fault!"

Gryffindor stepped forward and touched his shoulder. "At ease, Salazar. Getting angry with ourselves will not help. He has tricked all into believing that he was the Divination Professor. What we must concentrate on now, is finding Darien Lupin and saving him before tomorrow."

"What if you don't find him before then? What will happen?" Sam asked stepping forward. The other three followed her.

All four Founders looked at her with grave looks. They were all quiet before Slytherin shook his head and folded his arms. "Hogwarts may remain safe and those who stand inside its grounds, but any who stand outside will be in danger. I believe the boy...Darien is outside the grounds with the Umbra. The location, I'm not sure. But without Darien and his unusual power, the gateway to the Otherworld will open, releasing any who passes through. Voldemort, Beliar De Diablo, any dark wizard can come through from their prison. And nothing can stop them. For if they step through the gateway, it will be chaotic. The Dark Ages may start all over again. And there won't be no Merlin here to stopping them. Only a handful of wizards and witches with great power but not great enough. The Dark Lords will be able to resist any power we can throw at them if they join together."

Lionel shook his head slowly. "But...what can Darien do to stop that? He's only 11 years old! A first year! And now he's going to die because of some damn demon and a bunch of stupid Dark Lords!"

There was a long silence before Rowena smiled and stepped forward. "It is not just Darien, Lionel. It's all of you. Darien has an ancient power, yes. He can speak to unseen ghosts, call upon spirits that are lost, and even walk in the minds of others as a Mindwalker. But he can not do it alone. All Four Houses of Hogwarts must stand together to defeat the Dark Lords."

Slowly, it dawned on the four students on what needed to be done. "You mean...everyone. The students, the professors. We have to get together and stand behind Darien to face the gateway." Sam said slowly.

And all Four Founders nodded.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's start making a stand."

All of them turned around to see Harry, Ron and Draco standing down the hall, looking at them. It had been Harry who spoke.

"Harry!" Rex said as he stared at the Auror.

Gryffindor faintly smiled. "How long have you three been standing there?" He asked. Harry shook his head as he walked forward with his two friends behind him. "Long enough." He looked at the four students. "We heard everything and saw everything. And I will not let Voldemort come back into this world. The world has had enough of him as it was." He looked right at Slytherin, who was staring right back at him. "And I will not let my best friend's son die. I promised Hermione that I would take care of Darien and I am going to keep that promise." Ron and Draco both nodded as they folded their arms. "That goes for us too." The red head Auror said.

Gryffindor seemed to stand taller as if very proud at what they said. "You truly are a Gryffindor, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley. Draco Malfoy, you may not be a Gryffindor, but you have heart. You remind me of Salazar before Umbra got a hold of him." He said glancing to his friend.

Draco just nodded as he lift his head higher. "Tell us what we have to do and we'll do it." He said. Helga Hufflepuff shook her head. "We must find Darien Lupin and save him."

"And we must assemble everyone." Slytherin added. "They must be prepared for what is to come." He met eyes with his friends. "And we inform them."

Rowena Ravenclaw smiled as she took his hand, smiling. "Together."

* * *

It was very late when Harry, Ron and Draco called the meeting in the Great Hall. All of the Hogwarts Professors were there, minus Professor Caligo though. They still couldn't find him or Darien. Remus was also in the Infirmary, still unconscious. Hermione had come to Hogwarts, once again, after recieving news of what had happened. She was still in tears after what had happened but she stood by her friends, wondering what was going on and why they weren't looking for Darien at the moment. All of Aurors were there as well. They were all either sitting on the benchs or standing around. The room was lit up by the candles floating high above them. Everyone was confused of why there were four Hogwarts students with them when they were suppose to be in bed. But Harry told everyone that it would be much simpler in explaining why he called the meeting with them there. So no one said anything else.

"Harry, I think it's best you start explaining now." Dumbledore said as he looked at how restless the Aurors were getting.

Harry nodded before he looking around at everyone. He blew out a deep sigh and stepped into the middle of everyone, turning a little to look around at everyone. "As you all know, Darien Lupin is missing and Remus is in a terrible state. And we all believe that it was Professor Caligo who did it to him. Question is why. Why did he attack Remus and what did he do to Darien?" No one spoke as they looked at one another.

Draco shook his head as he stepped forward. "It's because of what he can do."

Harry nodded as he glanced at Draco. "I think that's the reason too. Darien has an unusual power that hasn't been used for thousands of years." He ran his fingers through his hair. "We don't understand what this power is and we can't even imagine how it works. Not to mention, we can't even explain it." He paused as he looked around. "But someone can."

The Professors and the Aurors looked around with confusion, minus Dumbledore. He was smiling though. Smiling as if he knew something. He eventually held up a hand to silence everyone who was talking. "Why don't you tell us who can explain it, Harry?"

Harry nodded. "I will. But before I do, there's something that I have to tell you all." He paused looking at the four students and motioned for them come forward. Rex, Lionel, Sam and Leoni hesitated but then did as they were told. "Not more than twenty minutes ago, Ron, Draco and I found these four talking to some very unusual people near the Gryffindor Tower." Harry explained. The four students recieved very suspicious looks from some of the Professors and Aurors but all three, Harry, Ron and Draco shook his head. "The four strangers explained something to these four students. They know what is going to happen tomorrow. They know why Caligo...no, the Umbra took Darien." Harry said.

Ron slowly nodded. "He's planning on killing Darien tomorrow during the eclipse."

Hermione covered her mouth as a sob started to break out of her. Her eyes filled with tears and she nearly broke down. Sirius went over to her side and wrapped his arm around her, to comfort her. "Swift, don't cry. We won't let that monster hurt him." He promised.

Harry nodded in agreement. "Yeah. The Umbra will not hurt him if our new friends's plan goes the way we all hope."

"Harry," began Shacklebolt. "Who are these people you're talking about?"

Harry faintly smiled as he looked at Ron and Draco, who smiled right back. Then all three pointed to behind the entire group, towards the doors. The Professors and Aurors only frowned at the answer but then turned around to see what they were pointing at. And immediately, everyone froze. Their eyes widening with surprise and shock. There stood four people. Two wizards and two witches.

The Founders of Hogwarts.

"Oh my god." Shacklebolt whispered as he turned fully to face the four, who were now slowly walking over towards the group.

Dumbledore was the first to break out of the stunned silence. He stepped right through everyone walking towards the four. Before he met them, he bowed his head respectfully. "Welcome, Honorable Guests. This is a very pleasant surprise, yet very unexpecting."

Godric Gryffindor just bowed his head right back. "Thank you, Albus Dumbledore, for your kind welcome. And we excuse ourselves for surprising you on such short notice. But it is quite nessessary." He told him.

Helga Hufflepuff nodded as she folded her fingers together. "Yes. Please forgive us." She said with a sweet smile.

"How is this possible? The Founders of Hogwarts, here? But..." McGonagall said with surprise.

Rowena Ravenclaw smiled as she stepped forward. "We have been here for a very long time, watching all of you and previous Headmasters and Mistresses. Previous Professors. We must say, we are proud to have you all be Professors of this school." She said gently. Salazar Slytherin just folded his arms with a gruff snort. "But I must say, there has been quite a lot of goings on in this school within the past hundred years." He then pointed at Snape, who was staring towards him. "By the way, you need to let up on your students, Gryffindor or not. Stop treating the Slytherins like gods and the Gryffindors like shit." Everyone snorted with laughter while Snape's face turned a faint pink color.

Hermione then stepped closer, wiping tears from her eyes. "Salazar Slytherin," She paused when the Founder looked at her. "You...were you really helping my son? Were you really talking to him when we couldn't hear you?"

Slytherin was quiet for a minute before he nodded. "Aye. Your son had been the only one who could see me and speak to me during this past year." He looked around at everyone. "I know that some of you have doubted my presence and I don't blame you. But the boy spoke true. I was an unseen ghost who only he could see. I have been here, living in this castle and watching what has been happening." He then frowned. "And I am ashamed of my last heir, for what he tried to do, for what he became. Tom Riddle will be punished if he escapes the Otherworld."

The Aurors looked at one another, thinking the same thing but it was Sirius who asked. "Why? Why are you ashamed of him when he's your heir? Didn't you want him to become the most powerful Dark Lord?" He asked, suspiciously.

Slytherin looked over at him but didn't say anything. Ravenclaw shook her head though. "Of course not, Sirius Black. Salazar may have done a few things in the past that would not agree with anyone. But he did not like Dark Wizards. And he was not a Dark Wizard himself as rumored." She explained

Gryffindor nodded as he stood taller. "And his heir was not the most powerful Dark Lord. It's not just Voldemort," Some of the Professors and Aurors shuddered at the name. "That you have to worry about."

"Then who is?" Tonks finally spoke up, her bright pink hair shimmering a little into blue.

Helga Hufflepuff shook her head. "The one Dark Lord you should worry about is Caligo Umbra's former master. Beliar De Diablo."

Several faces had gone very pale at the very name. Even Dumbledore's. He wasn't smiling anymore. "Lord Diablo. One of the worst Dark Lords in history."

"Who is he?" Hermione asked, for she didn't know that name.

Ravenclaw shook her head. "He's a Dark Lord who brought the Dark Ages, a million years ago." She looked around at everyone. "He was the one Dark Lord that had succeeded in alining the Moon and Sun for hundreds of years. That was why they called it the Dark Ages of the Magical world." She told them all. Slytherin nodded in agreement. "And it's up to all of you and us to make sure the Dark Ages does not repeat itself."

"But what can we do to stop it? How?" Sirius asked.

Gryffindor just smiled. "We must stand together. The Houses of Hogwarts have been reunited, as my old hat had told you about before. But when the time comes, all must stand together. Professors and students. Gryffindors, Slytherins, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. With all of us standing together, we can defeat the evil that is trying to come back into this world."

Hufflepuff nodded once. "But there is one other thing that must be done." She told the Professors.

"What's that, Madam Hufflepuff?" Dumbledore asked.

Slytherin shook his head as he dropped his arms to his sides and dipped his head a little, looking very serious. "The boy must be there with us. Darien Lupin. We must find him. If he dies, there is no hope to stopping the Dark Ages from coming."

Hermione lowered her head, tears trickling down her cheeks again. "My son." She whispered. "But what can he do? He's only 11 years old." She looked when she felt a gentle hand touch her shoulder.

It was Rowena Ravenclaw. "Do not doubt what a child can do, Hermione Lupin." She said gently. "Though a child Darien is, he still can do much. He has been tutored by Salazar this year on what the Umbra in Caligo has tried to teach him. Only, Salazar was not trying to hurt him. He was trying to protect him. To teach him how to walk in the minds of others. An ability that is beyond Occulemency and the level of a first year." She told her.

Everyone looked at her with confusion before looking at Slytherin, who was shaking his head. He knew what they wanted to ask. "There is no direct name for the power. The closest to it is being Mindwalking. It is a mixture of Occlumency and regular Divination. However, only wizards and witches with the true Eye of Divination can do it. I have taught him how to close his mind to any who tries to use Occlumency on him. He's still working on it but he's still learning. He has walked among a world that he has created in his own mind. With great pratice, he will be able to learn how to pull others into his world and let them walk in a world of the mind." He then shook his head. "The trouble is, Umbra can Mindwalk too. And I'm afraid he may use it against Darien. And if he does it, the boy won't be ready to defend himself. He can die if he enters a mind battle with Umbra."

Hermione gave a choking sob but didn't let herself break down completely. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to wipe tears away. "Tell me what I can do to save my son." She said lifting her head.

Slytherin shook his head. "You can not do anything. You do not have..."

"The hell I can't!" Hermione said fiercely. "I might not have the Eye of Divination but I have the love of a mother and I will not stand around and let some heartless bastard kill my oldest child! My first born son!"

Everyone stared at her with wide eyes. They could not believe she had just raised her voice at one of the Hogwarts Founders and Salazar Slytherin, no less. They had pretty much expected that Slytherin would blow her off, growling at her to silence herself and not say anything again. But he didn't.  
Instead, a very sly smile spread out on his face and he folded his arms once again. Everyone was surprised by his reaction. Everyone but the other three Founders. They were smiling as well.

"You truly have the heart of a Gryffindor, Hermione." Gryffindor said with a nod.

Helga Hufflepuff nodded. "And the love of a Hufflepuff."

"As the Intelligence of a Ravenclaw." Ravenclaw said gently.

Slytherin nodded. "And you are ambitious." He paused. "But not like a Slytherin. Darien has the same traits as you. But he gets his dark heritage from his father." He turned away looking around at everyone before looking back at her. "And that is exactly what we need to save Darien Lupin. You are the only one that can help me save him. The love of a mother is great. Especially when she is a very intellect witch." He then held out his hand towards her. "Take my hand, Hermione Lupin. And I will show you what you need to do."

Hermione hesitated for a long moment. She glanced at all of her friends before looking at the other three Founders. All three just gave her a nod, Rowena Ravenclaw just smiled at her as she folded her hands together. Then Hermione took the once rumored Dark wizard's hand, a little surprised that he felt solid.

Slytherin just nodded as he stepped a little closer to her, looking deep into her eyes. "Now, close your eyes and relax. This may be a little intimidating at first. But do what you can to stay relaxed. Do not be afraid for the slightest second." He told her.

Hermione only nodded as she did what she was told. She did her best to relax before she felt a very tingling sensation. She stiffened a little when she felt the little pricks in her body as if her body had just fallen asleep. And like what happened to Darien before, her vision seemed to snap open but she knew she still had her eyes closed. Hermione almost gasped as she saw colorful rings flying past her, but she did her best to staying relaxed. She felt as if she was falling very fast but something was holding onto her. She wasn't sure what it was because she couldn't see what it was. That is until the world around her slowly appeared. Shadows seemed to crawl away from her, opening up to a very beautiful meadow of green. There silver trees all around her and it was dark, yet there was a very beautiful white moon high above her. And then she turned her head when she still felt someone touching her.

Salazar Slytherin was still standing next to her. But where was everyone else? They seemed to have completely disappeared. It was just her and Slytherin, standing in a dark meadow with silver light shining down on them.

"Where are we?" She suddenly asked as she looked around.

Slytherin dropped her hand and stepped away, looking around. It surprised Hermione to see him in such a peaceful state as he was. Before, he had looked so grumpy but now he looked almost civilized. "We are in my world. I have brought you into mind world." He turned a little to see a portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw just hovering in mid air. Hermione only tilted her head in a curious way. She was wondering why Slytherin would have a picture of Ravenclaw in his mind. And then she noticed the look on his face as he gazed at the portrait. She saw passion. And she knew.

"You were in love with her."

Slytherin only tilted his head towards her before looking back at the portrait. "Yes. I am in love with her. I have loved her from the moment I saw Rowena." He was quiet for a minute before he shook his head, looking at her. "She's a muggleborn, just like you."

Hermione just kept her head tilted. She decided to change the subject. "And why did you bring me here? What was you going to show me?"

The Founder nodded as he faced her fully. "Everything you see around you is an illusion, Hermione Lupin. Everything in a mind is not real unless you think it is. When we find Darien and the Umbra, it's more than likely that they'll be battling it out in the mind worlds. I will take you into those worlds. But you must shut your mind to everything you see. Do not let the Umbra into your mind if he tries to attack you. And if he stabs you with a sword, remember. It is not real. You must understand that. If you remember that whatever you see is an illusion, you will stay safe. Now draw your wand. We shall duel but use only minor spells, none that will seriously hurt either of us."

Hermione only frowned but she did what she was told. She pulled out her wand and faced him. Slytherin pulled out his own wand and it surprised her to see that it was also Darien's wand. "What are you doing with Darien's wand?" She asked seriously.

"If you remember right, it is my wand. It was only passed onto Darien after so many years." Slytherin said impatiently. "Besides, it is only an illusion. As is your own. Now I will throw a minor spell at you. You can block it just as easily as if it were real. But remember, keep your mind clear."

Hermione nodded as she stood ready.

"Expelliarmus!" Slytherin bellowed as he flicked the wand. The spell flew at Hermione and she quickly waved her wand, deflecting the spell away from her. The Founder nodded. "Good. Now this time, don't block it. But remember. It is only an illusion." Again Hermione nodded, looking very hesitant when Slytherin started to wave his wand. She was really tempted to just ignoring him and deflecting the spell anyway but decided against it. Her curiousity was getting the better of her.

And as if it was the real spell, she flew backward as soon as the spell hit her. She had expected herself to just land painfully on the ground but she felt herself crash into a very large pillow. Slytherin just shook his head. He has summoned the illusionary pillow as if it were nothing, just to make sure she didn't get hurt in his mind.

"That was well expected." He said still shaking his head. "Now try again. It is only an illusion. Say it in your mind as I do it again." He told her as she stood up again.

Hermione just glared at him but did what she was told. She kept on repeating it as the Expelliarmus spell was flying at her again. She winced a little as she expected it to hit her. But as she kept repeating the words and started to believe in their meaning, the spell went right through her. It had surprised her too much that she stepped back. "What was that?!" She gasped.

Slytherin only smirked. "That is exactly what I want you to do. To believe that everything that flies at you in the mind worlds is not real, it will save your life. Trust me. I may be Salazar Slytherin, but I am on your side."

Hermione just stared at him for a long moment before she smiled and nodded. "Thank you." She paused. "Thank you for helping my son."

Slytherin only nodded before he left the world go around them.

Hermione's eyes snapped open as she staggered back, Sirius and Harry immediately stepping forward to catch her. She caught herself on them. Slytherin just shook his head as he kept a hold onto her hand, making sure that she wouldn't fall any further. "That is another thing you must remember. When you enter a mind world while standing up, when you return, remember you are still standing." He warned her before letting her go as soon as she was up right again.

"Hermione! What happened?" Ron asked stepping forward.

Hermione shook her head as she looked around. "I'm not entirely sure. I entered some kind of realm." She then frowned looking back at Slytherin. "Did we disappear?"

Slytherin shook his head. "No. Our bodies are still here in the real world as we enter the mind worlds. In the mind worlds, we can be there for hours. But in the real world, we are there for only five seconds."

Hermione looked at her friends before nodding. "Okay. I believe that." She then frowned. "But what are we going to do now? We have to find my son."

Gryffindor nodded as he folded his powerful arms over his brawny chest. "And we will search for him. Outside the boundaries of Hogwarts, of course. For we know the Umbra can not set foot back on the grounds."

Harry's mouth fell open as he remembered something. "Wait! If you four are together again, that must mean..." He paused trying to think straight.

But the Four Founders nodded. "Yes. Darien had named us all and we have been reunited. The magic of the Foundation Stones have been restored. Hogwarts is now safe again." He then shook his head. "But there is still outside of Hogwart's grounds. I will assemble the Gargoyles and we will search through out the night for any sign of the Umbra and Darien. For I am Golem the Gargoyle."

"And I will fly all night if I have to, to find him. I am Rowena the Raven, pet to Darien." Ravenclaw said. "And with the help of fellow ravens, I may find him."

Helga Hufflepuff nodded. "I was the Fat Lady who guarded the Gryffindor Tower. And I will travel through portraits, looking in every building that is in Hogsmeade."

Slytherin just looked at Hermione. "I won't search for Darien just yet. You still need to do a little more training in the mind worlds. We will work together until Dawn or when they find Darien."

Dumbledore nodded as he looked around. "Agreed, everyone. Aurors, Professors, we must search as well."

"What about us?" Rex asked suddenly.

The adults all had almost forgotten that the four students were there. They had been quiet the entire time that no one had noticed they were. "You four must go back to your Houses and get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a very long and hard day. You will need your rest." Dumbledore instructed them.

Lionel shook his head. "But we want to help find Darien. He's our best friend and we won't let him die." He said with determination.

Everyone faintly smiled but shook their heads. "Mr. Boyd, there's nothing you can do right now. You need your rest." McGonagall said. Dumbledore only nodded. "Professor McGonagall is right, Lionel. You can't do anything right now. But you can tomorrow. Just rest." He said. Lionel sighed as he lowered his head. "I don't think I can."

"Me neither." Rex said just as sadly.

Both Sam and Leoni nodded. "Us too, Professor." The dark haired Gryffindor girl said.

"You must try. Sirius, why don't you escort them to their houses." Dumbledore told the Caretaker.

Sirius just nodded as he motioned for the four to follow him. The four students just wearily followed after him.

Hermione bit her lip timidly. "What about Remus? How is my husband doing?" She asked worriedly. Everyone looked at her with sympathy but Dumbledore smiled. "He will be fine, Hermione. Severus had mended his wounds at the right time. He may be out for days but he will heal nicely."

Ravenclaw then frowned as she looked at Hermione. "Remus Lupin is a werewolf, is he not?" She recieved a nod from the other woman and she smiled. "Then he should be awake tomorrow. The healing process of a werewolf can be quite remarkable. Especially when it will be the eclipse. When the moon and sun shall be alined and it becomes dark, his wounds will be gone."

Hermione smiled looking quite hopeful. "You really think so?"

Slytherin nodded at the thought. "Rowena is right. That may be why Caligo Umbra wants the werewolf trait from Darien. The healing process of werewolves and vampires alike are beyond any spell that we can use. They heal very fast and will still be quite strong."

"They Negatus Mysterium." Draco muttered. "Exactly how does that work anyway? Umbra lost his powers because of that spell, right? That's what it said in my demon book."

The Four Founders all nodded. "Yes. And Umbra will try to use that on Darien, to take his powers and his werewolf traits. He's trying to become a wizard again." Ravenclaw said.

Slytherin snorted as he folded his arms. "But we will not let him do it."

"But how does it work?" Harry asked, curiously.

No one spoke but all three Founders, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff looked straight at Slytherin, who looked away. There was a very long silence as the Founder's face darkened. He was remembering the Negatus Mysterium spell.

"Salazar." Gryffindor said softly to break him out of his thoughts.

Slytherin sharply looked at him but then looked around at everyone. "I remember it now. The Negatus Mysterium works quite easily if you know how to do it. There are a few ways of doing it. Long ago, vampires used to do it while sucking the life out of their victims. In that way, the person using it just bites a victim and tries to absorb all of the magic within their victim." Some of the Professors and Aurors looked alarmed to hear that but they didn't say anything. "Another way deals with a certain pentagram, which is not easy to make. How it works is, the person using it must draw up the pentagram then set their victim inside it and recite the spell, which is quite long. If I remember right, it takes almost an hour to get it right. It's more effective doing it that way. The biting way just kills the victims. And I don't think Umbra wants to kill him just yet. Just until he takes Darien's powers from him." Slytherin shook his head. "If Umbra uses the Negatus Mysterium on Darien, the boy will lose all powers to him. And that is not what we want him to do. With Darien's powers, the Umbra can do all sorts of horrors. He can even hand his powers to his old Master, Beliar De Diablo. And I'm thinking that's what he's really up to. If not, he is probably just looking to become the next most powerful Dark Lord."

"How can we stop him from using the Negatus Mysterium on Darien then?" Harry asked seriously.

Slytherin shook his head, for once that night, he looked tired. "You can't. Only Darien can stop him."

"How?" Ron asked.

Slytherin just looked at him with a stern gaze. "He must get out of the pentagram before the Umbra finishes the spell. Let's only hope he will be able to do that. If he gets out of the pentagram, the spell will be lost and Umbra will be very angry. We must find him in that time."

Everyone nodded. "Very well. We will begin the search now." Dumbledore said as he started towards the doors. Everyone followed him with high hopes in finding Darien Lupin before it grew too late.


	27. Chapter 26

**Author's Notes: Thank you for your reviews. Let's just move on with the story.**

**Chapter 26.**

Pain. That was all Darien felt inside his head as he started to wake up. His head felt like it had been split open by a hammer. The left side of his head felt a little warm and sticky though and he could smell the familiar iron smell of blood. He desperetly tried to open his eyes but he found it way too hard. He shuddered as he felt something cold against his back. Something very cold and hard. He figured that he had been lying on his side though.

Darien groaned with pain as he tried to turn over onto his back, but found that he couldn't at first. He slowly opened his eyes, seeing nothing but darkness. He blinked several times before turning a little to look over his shoulder to see what it was that was behind him. It was some kind of rocky wall.

"Ugh." He groaned again as he moved a little on the cold, rocky hard ground just so that he could turn onto his back. He reached up with one hand, finding that his other followed with a jerk. He frowned as he looked at his hands, before gasping sharply to see that he was shackled with irons. He suddenly remembered what hade happened and it made him sit up quickly, looking around wildly. He remembered what had happened before he had blacked out. Professor Caligo had attacked his father. He had hurt him, possibly killed him. And then he threw him, Darien, against the wall to knock him out. But why? Why did he attack him?! Something was terribly wrong. Could the Umbra have possessed the Divination Professor or something? The Professor had tried to protect him once, didn't he?

He was confused. And thinking too much wasn't helping him right at the moment. His head ached too badly. But what Darien had to do at the moment, was think. He had to figure out where he was and how to get out of the iron shackles. So he took the chance to look around the area. Though it was dark, he still could see a little. There was a little light shining through a crack high above him. He could barely see the moon through the crack. A full moon but it's light wasn't touching him. He was in some kind of cavern. But where?

Darien looked down at the shackles, trying to see if it was attached to anything. He couldn't see anything. He tried moving them a little, giving them a light pull away from the wall but found that they were not attached to the wall. So he could run if he tried. Though bounded, he still could run.

So Darien did his best to standing, using the stone wall behind him for support. He staggered a little, feeling very light headed. It was probably because his head was bleeding from the cut in his head. He had lost a little bit of blood and the smell of it made his stomach churn. He really didn't like that smell at all. Werewolf or not. He paused for a second, when heard the fluttering of wings. His heart was pounding hard against his chest as he stood there. He was waiting for the Umbra to just swoop down on him and kill him. But then he heard the squeaks of bats. So it had not been the darkness demon. He waited for another minute until it was completely silent.

'Where is the Umbra?' Darien thought fearfully. He shuddered a little to think that the demon may have been watching him. But he wasn't sure. He had really expected the demon or the Divination Professor to start talking to him once he had woken up. Maybe both of them had gone to sleep. It must have been very early in the morning or something. He could feel how cold it was in the dark cavern. It was so cold that he could feel goosebumps rising on his skin.

Without a word, Darien slowly began to walk across the cavern, being very careful as he stepped. What little nightvision he had thanks to his werewolf trait, he could just barely see. But it was still very difficult. He then remembered his lightstone and reached up to see if he could find it. But it was gone.

'Typical.' Darien grumbled to himself. He knew that Professor Caligo must have torn it off. But then he frowned as he remembered something.

Professor Caligo had been imatating his father, Remus Lupin. But how did he do that? How did he make himself look like his father and then suddenly look like himself when his father showed up? There was only one answer he could think off. Professor Caligo was the Umbra. He had to be. The darkness demon was a shapeshifter and could shapeshift into anyone he wanted to be. That scared him, greatly.

Darien suddenly found that he was coming close to the mouth of the cave now. He could see outside and more light was pouring in from the full moon. He hesitated a little. He knew that if he stepped out into the light, he would probably transform into a werewolf. And he did not have control over his wolf state like his father did.

"Ah, whatever. Better to be a werewolf than be Umbra's prisoner." He whispered in a very low voice that he barely even heard himself say it.

And he started to step forward to go outside the cave.

"Oh no you don't." Someone suddenly spoke up from the darkness. Darien felt himself jump the very second he heard that voice and he started to bolt to run outside but something grabbed the back of his robes and tossed him back into the darkness. He landed hard on his back crying out in pain as his head hit the stone floor. He almost blacked out right then and there but he stayed conscious with much luck.

Darien quickly scrambled to his knees, trying to back up into the wall. His eyes wide with fear as he searched the darkness for the Umbra. He knew it had been his voice.

"L-let me go! Please! Just let me go!" He stammered fearfully.

He felt dumb that he was about to cry but he knew no one could blame him. He was in a very dangerous situation and fear did intend to scare anyone to tears. He could feel his whole body just turn cold as soon as he saw the very large dark shadow standing in the mouth of the cave. And by the size of it and the wings spread out on its back, he knew it was the Umbra.

"Heh, you already know I won't, you little welp. So stop begging." The demon growled at him.

Darien shivered against the wall, his shackled wrists starting to ache against the hard metal. He wrapped his arms around his knees. "Wh-where is Professor Caligo?" He asked, shakily. He heard the demon snort with humor before the form of it shrank down into a human form. His eyes grew wide to see the Professor before him. "I'm right here, Darien." The wicked Professor sneered.

"So you were the Umbra all along." Darien found himself saying.

The demon just sneered at him with his Professor's face. "No. Not entirely." He said shaking his head as he stepped closer to the boy. "I've only recently taken his form."

"If...if you recently took his form, then Professor Caligo...who is Professor Caligo?" Darien asked nervously.

The Umbra just shrugged his human form's shoulders. "The real Professor is Alexander Caligo. You should know his name. That Draco Malfoy told you about him." He told him lazily.

Darien sat there quietly, remembering what Draco had said. So the Divination Professor really had been a fortune teller but what had happened to him and how long had the Umbra been posing him. So Darien asked.

The darkness demon sneered at him as if he found it very funny. "Why do you care so much about your dear Divination Professor, _Dari_? Should you not be more worried about yourself?" He asked almost threateningly.

Darien chose not to answer. He just waited for the demon to answer his own question. After a minute, the demon posing as a human leaned against the rocky wall, letting just a little light shine down on his feet. "Your Professor is alive, Darien but just barely. I have possessed him numorous times. He'll be lucky if he ever survives another time. As for his whereabouts, your friends may find him inside the Chamber of Secrets, inside Salazar Slytherin's statue head. I've been keeping him there since the last time he tried blocking me out of your head."

Darien's eyes widened. "So that was you who attacked me in the Library! And it was Caligo who was trying to help me!"

The Umbra demon nodded. "Yes."

"But...when was it that you possessed him and when was he himself?" Darien asked, just trying to get the demon to talk. The more info he could get the better. He could already see the darkness outside starting to dim. So it told him that it was early morning. And if the sun came up while the Umbra was still talking and not noticing it at all, it could give Darien the chance to escape. The demon could not go into the sunlight. Not until it was dark again.

And to his relief, the Umbra didn't seem to notice that it was becoming dim outside. He just kept his back to the cavern, facing Darien. "Well, the very first time I possessed Caligo was when I went to see you in the Infirmary after your little werewolf incident. He wasn't even aware that I was inside him. I left him after we went back to the Divination Tower and I possessed your little friend, Paul. I didn't possess him for quite a while. When it was actually him who spoke to you, you asked him to take the Divination lessons. That was actually him and not me. I only possessed him during your talk with him. He didn't even realize it until after your talk." The demon sneered. "He knew that you can't have an open mind when it came to the Divination lessons. It was I who told you to have an open mind." He grinned.

Darien just gritted his teeth as he glared at the demon. "Yeah, but it kind of blew up in your face when I stopped taking the lessons, didn't it?" He asked as harshly as he could.

The Umbra did not look amused at the way he was being spoke to. He narrowed his red eyes at him and growled. "Indeed." He growled. "That was actually very annoying when my dear old friend Salazar began to teach you, himself. And it was even more annoying when Alex Caligo went ahead and confronted you about quitting the lessons. He did it to spite me and to protect you." He gave a low threatening growl. "I punished him after that."

"When did he figure out that it was you that was possessing him?" Darien asked in spite.

The Umbra just snorted. "As I said. He started to get suspicious of me after our talk about those lessons. He just didn't fight as much until after I made him stab your dear Professor Snape in the back during your detention."

"That was you?! You're the one who stabbed Snape?!" Darien asked with wide eyes.

"Well, in a sense, yes. I was just too annoyed with that git after he interferred with our lessons. He figured out that you were taking the Divination Lessons with me and Caligo and decided to interfer without telling anyone else. Figured that if he did it himself, he could handle it. But not until Caligo stabbed him with this knife." He said reaching into his robes and pulled out a very long bladed dagger. Darien stiffened when he saw it. That wasn't good.

The demon seemed to guess as much because he grinned evilly at him. "Yes, Darien. I am well armed, though I don't need to be. I can kill you if you keep snapping at me like you are."

"You won't get away with this, Umbra." Darien said a little shakily. "You hurt my friends, almost killed my father last night. You won't get away with it." He said as boldly as he could.

The Umbra just stared at him, his dark smile still on his face. "Oh, Darien, that's where you're wrong. I've already gotten away with it. Your Auror friends may find Caligo unconscious in the Chamber of Secrets and he be blamed for killing your father." Darien's heart nearly stopped and the Umbra grinned. "Oh, yes, _Dari. _Your father is dead. I killed him, making it look like Caligo. When the Aurors find him, they find that he has his wand. And when they test it, it will show that the last spell used was the Sectumsempra, the spell I used against your pathedic father."

Darien glared at him but wisely chose to not say anything.

"He will be blamed. But by the time they figure everything out, it will be too late for you." The demon said in a very evil and low voice. "You will have lost your powers, be mutilated after I torture you physically and mentally, and it would be the eclipse. The Dark Ages will begin once the day of Darkness comes. And that day is today. The other world will open up and the Dark Lords of the past will come out. And no one will stop them."

"The Four Founders will have stopped them! Hogwarts is safe from you!" Darien said as boldly as he could.

The Umbra smirked. "But you did not name the last Founder, remember? You did not go to him and call him by name. I don't know if he really is Golem but I know for a fact that I will kill him once the Day of Darkness begins. He will learn to never defy me again. As will you." He growled with satisfaction.

Darien shook his head, blinking several times. "But aren't you forgetting something?"

"And pray, tell me what am I forgetting?" The demon asked raising his human eyebrow.

Darien just stared right into his eyes. "You don't have the power to align the moon and sun forever. Only the gargoyles can do that. But they don't agree with you. They have to choose that they want the Day of Darkness. Golem told me that. It's the Gargoyle legend." He smirked to himself. "The gargoyles don't trust you anymore. Do they?"

That really seemed to annoy the Umbra. He glared very hard at Darien, his human face starting to melt away, revealing his demonic form once again. His large black wings spread out on his back before folding again as he stepped forward. Darien felt his fear rising up again. It was not yet light outside and if the demon chose to kill him now, he could. He shrank back as the demon moved closer. "I'd watch what you say, Darien Lupin. I am so close to killing you, boy. You have defied me this entire year and I hate being defied. You have turned my gargoyle brothers against me and that really pisses me off." The demon hissed into his face.

Darien cowered a little lower but he tried his best to stay brave. "But you were using them, Umbra. They were your gargoyle brothers and you used them." He knew that wasn't smart to say that but he couldn't stop himself from saying it anyway.

The demon hissed angrily in his face before he rose his claws and back handed him hard across the cheek. The back of his claws slashed open his skin but not entirely deep. But it still hurt.

"Argh!" Darien cried out in pain as he was thrown to his side. His shackled hands slapped over the gash in his cheek and he could feel his warm blood trickling through his fingers. Tears of pain streamed in his eyes as he looked up at the angry demon standing above him.

"I warned you, Lupin! One more remark like that and I will make you regret ever being born!" He snapped.

Darien could feel his body just shaking with pain as his cheek stung. There was a breeze blowing in the cave now and the air really made his cheek sting a whole lot worst. He gently touched his new wounds in his face, trying to feel how deep they were. He winced as it stung even more. It was more than likely that the gashes would leave scars.

The Umbra finally turned away from him, glaring off into the darkness. "As for the Day of Darkness, don't you worry yourself, _little boy_. I have it all under control. My dark world that I will create will still come. I have more than half of the Gargoyle clans on my side. There are only four different clans that are refusing me. But my new clans out-number them."

'Yeah, but you need all of them.' Darien thought bitterly as he tried to sit up, still pressing his back against the wall.

As if the demon had read his mind, he jerked around and glared at the boy. "Look under you, boy." He growled.

Darien just glared at him, tears still in his eyes. But then he looked under him, frowning to see some kind of symbols all around him. There was a semi circle all around him, stopping at the edge of the stone wall. Several symbols marked outside the lines and in between another. It was some kind of pentagram. Darien had seen a few like this one before in a book. Though pentagrams were rarely used. But what was this one used for?

Again as if he read his mind, the Umbra sneered at him as he faced the young student. "The Negatus Mysterium begins now."

Darien gasped and started to throw himself to the side to get out of the pentagram but he felt a very strong force grab his hands and slammed them above his head against the rocky wall. The young werewolf cried out in pain as he felt something crack in his thumb. It was no doubt that the impact had just broken his hand. He had to bite his tongue to keep from screaming. He was not going to let the demon have the satisfaction of hearing him anymore. He just held in his scream of pain, clenching his teeth tightly shut and shutting his eyes. He could hear the Umbra laughing darkly as he began to recite something in a foreign language.

'I've got to get out of here.' Darien thought, trying to ignore the pain in his hand and cheek. His wrists were still stuck above his head. He didn't even know how the Umbra was keeping them there. And he really didn't care. He just had to get out of there before he lost everything.  
Darien opened his eyes and looked towards the mouth of the cave. It was still dark yet there was a very dim light starting to peep through the dark trees. He really had to figure out someway to get that light to shine in the cave. But how? He didn't have his wand...or did he?

The young Gryffindor student looked down at his robes and spotted the tip of his wand sticking out. Somehow, he needed to get a hold of that. But he couldn't even move his hands. Then an idea popped into his head. He might not have been able to move his hands but he could move his feet. The thought of doing this made him crinkle his nose but he didn't really have a choice.

Darien looked up at the demon to see that he had closed his eyes as he was reciting. It must have been apart of the spell he was trying to cast. His eyes, however, lingered on one of the symbols in the pentagram. Two of them had started to glow a scarlet color. And he had a feeling that was not a good thing.  
Without any effort, Darien, kicked off his right shoe, letting it fall to the side. Then he planted his foot down against the floor of the cavern, crinkling his nose as he could already smell his own feet. 'Ugh. Talking about gross.' He thought to himself.  
With his other foot, which still had it's shoe on, he stepped on his right foot and pulled off his sock, finally getting it off. Another symbol was now glowing scarlet. Yet there were still at least fifty more to go. Darien quickly looked up at the demon again to see if he was watching. The demon's eyes were still closed.

'So far, so good. Now to get my wand out of my pocket. That's going to be hard.' Darien thought nervously. He began to jerk around, trying to get the blackish-red wand to fall out of his pocket. 'Come on. Get out of there. I need your help.' He thought to it.

After five minutes of useless struggling, he stopped, panting wearily.

The demon was still reciting the spell. Luckily he had not opened his eyes once. Darien could tell that the darkness demon was concentrating very hard. And by the sound of the words he was chanting, it was a very hard spell. Darien could indicate quite a few languages the demon was speaking. He could hear a little bit of Latin and Italian. He didn't know that any spell had to be spoken in different languages. But what did he know? He was still a first year.

Darien went back to trying to get the wand out of his pocket and with luck on his side this time, the wand fell out. It clattered on the floor but that didn't seem to bother the demon. He was still reciting. There were now twenty five symbols glowing scarlet. And there were still some more to go. But they were starting to narrow down.

Now it was time for the close to the last phase of his plan, and hopefully it worked. Darien shifted himself to get on his knees, wincing a little as he stubbed his big toe against the ground. He finally got to his feet, having to crouch because his shackled hands were still trapped against the rocky wall. He almost cried out in pain as his left hand throbbed painfully from being broken. But he managed to just whimper. Still the Umbra didn't seem bothered. It was like he didn't even know that Darien was moving around, trying to pick his wand up with his foot. He probably just figured that Darien was trying to pull his hands free from the shackles and was hurting himself in the process. Not like he cared.

Darien gritted his teeth, breathing very hard from the pain before stepping his right foot onto the wand and curled his toes around the wood, hoping that it would work. He failed the first three times, collasping for a minute to his knees. The symbols in the pentagram was slowly starting to narrow down. There was still a few left.

The light outside the cave, though, was much lighter, yet still dim. And the Umbra still didn't seem to notice. They were far from the mouth of the cave, away from the reaches of the sunlight. It was still plenty dark in the cave. Problem was, Darien was now starting to feel drained of energy. It was almost like every second he stayed in the pentagram now, he was getting much more tired.

Darien tried one more time to pick his wand up with his foot and this time, he did it. Now the last phase and he really hoped that it worked. Darien swallowed hard as he sank down onto his rear, still clutching the wand between his toes. 'Please let this work.' He begged the fates. He gritted his teeth, lifting his foot into air and did a few practice waves in the air with it before nodding. It was just waving but it had to do.

"All right, Umbra. Time to pay for it." He whispered very lowly under his breath.

There was a some reaction to that. The demon must have heard that. He had paused for a millisecond during the reciting but then picked it up quickly. His eyes still closed.

With a wave of the foot and wand, Darien jerked his whole body trying to get it right. "Lumos!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.

And to his great relief, the tip of the wand lit up brightly, illuminating the rest of the cave. That had a much more bigger reaction to the darkness demon. The demon's eyes snapped open wide before he hissed in pain as the light touched his black skin, sizzling it a little. The demon did what he could to escape the light's touch, backing away right out of the mouth of the cave. Just as the sun started peeping through the trees too. The sunlight peirced the Umbra's black skin, making it burst with smoke. The demon snarled in pain as he jumped right back into the cave, taking flight towards the darkness.

Luckily for Darien, the spell keeping his wrists against the rocky wall was broken. He was allowed to move again. He moved as fast as he could, scampering to his feet after dropping his wand to the ground. He quickly scooped it up with his hands and ran for the mouth of the cave.

"Damn you, Darien!" The Umbra hissed angrily as he dove from the dark corner after him.

He nearly had him before the boy reached the mouth of the cave. His claws had wrapped around the back of his robes and yanked him back. Darien cried out as he staggered back but he fought to get lose. He ended up have to drop down to the ground and kicking both feet up at the demon's face. He had the pleasure to feel his shoe covered foot and his bare foot smash against the demon's already flat face. And he was pretty sure that the demon's nose had just broken. The demon made such a loud squeak in pain that it echoed throughout the entire cave and into the trees. He had no choice but to let Darien go.

Darien scampered to his feet and bolted through the trees. He was not going to stop until he was out of the forest or when he found help. And the demon could not follow him because of the light. He would have to wait till the eclipse.

But what was better, the Negatus Mysterium spell had failed.

His barefoot was slightly bleeding from running over sticks and rocks. He was limping but he had not stopped. Darien just ran as fast as he could, dodging around trees. He had no idea where he was but he was pretty sure that it was still in the Dark Forest. He only hoped that he was going into the direction of Hogwarts. If not, then hopefully he was going towards Hogsmeade. Again, if not, god help him find someone where he could be safe.

Finally, Darien stopped when he tripped over a tree root, landing hard onto his face. His lungs felt like they were going to burst from breathing so fast. His throat was dry and his feet ached. But what was worst, he was scared to death. It was no doubt that the Umbra was going to kill him for ruining his spell. Not that he wasn't going to anyway. He had already promised that he would kill him after making him break ties with the Darkwyng Gargoyle clan.

He was alone in the Dark Forest and he had no idea where he was suppose to go. And he had no idea when the eclipse was going to start. It could have been pretty soon.

Suddenly Darien felt something touch the back of his head and he cried out with fear, throwing himself to the ground and looking around. His heart was going a million miles per hour, or so it felt. He looked frantically around for what could have touched him but he didn't see anything. He heard a snort though, sounding as if something was close by.

"Hell-hello?" He asked shakily.

There was no answer. Only he felt something touch him again. He jerked away from it, feeling himself collide with something but he still could not see it. He swung his hands at whatever it could be and felt them hit something. There was an angry snort of some kind of creature before he felt something bit him.

"Ouch!" Darien cried out, jerking away. The bite wasn't that bad. It didn't even tear his skin but it still hurt. "What the?!" He said looking around with wide eyes.

Then he heard someone laughing.

Darien jerked around, only to see someone hiding behind a tree. That someone was a female centaur. Long golden brown hair covered her bare skin, hiding everything that Darien did not want to see. She was quite pretty for someone out of his species. She had a golden horse body with white spots on her rear end. Her skin was also golden brown and he could see deep blue eyes under her long bangs. She seemed quite young, probably a few years older than he was. Maybe at least 16 years old.

"Who...who are you?" Darien stammared.

The centaur was no longer laughing or smiling when she noticed his shackled hands. "Oh dear." She said as she stepped out from behind the large tree. She slowly walked over, gently touching the air as if pushing something out of her way. Something seemed to bump her hand and she snorted right back at whatever it was. "Stop that, Jack. And you know better than to bite people." She said to the open air.

Darien just frowned as he looked up at her. "Who are you talking to?" He asked still shaking a little.

The centaur looked down at him before shaking her head. She touched something in the air, her hand seeming to rest on something but Darien still couldn't see what it was. "This is Jack. He's a Thestral. And seeing that you can't see him, you haven't see death yet. Which is probably a good thing." She then bent her horse like knees so she could be closer to Darien. "Oh boy. You are in quite the mess, aren't you?"

Darien tilted his head, cowering away from her. "You didn't answer my question. Who are you?" He asked a little more boldly this time.

The centaur just frowned at him before shaking her head. "I'm Serria. A centaur, as you can see. And who are you? How did you get all the way out here and who did this to you?" She asked looking him over.

Darien saw her eyes stop on the gashes in his cheek but then they looked at his head where he knew there was dried blood in his hair. Probably from his cracked head. "I'm Darien Lupin. I'm a student at Hogwarts. I was kidnapped by an evil creature last night. A darkness demon called the Umbra."

The centaur immediately drew back, gasping in fear. Her human body only moved but her horse body stayed right where it was. "The Umbra did this to you?!" Serria gasped.

Darien nodded wincing a little as the air blew into his cut up cheek. "C-can you help me? I've got to get back to Hogwarts before the eclipse. If it gets dark before I get back, the Umbra is going to come after me. And if he catchs me, I'm going to die. Please, help me." He begged.

Serria just frowned as she moved away from him a little. But then she stood up, shaking her head. "I can't. Centaurs don't help humans." She said turning away and started to leave.

"Please! I'm begging you! The demon is going to kill me if he catches me! Please!" Darien said, his voice cracking a little. He knew he sounded pathedic but hopefully the more pathedic he sounded, the more pity the centaur would give him. At least he hoped so.

Serria did stop when she heard his voice crack. She turned her human body around and looked down at him before she sighed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, Bane is going to kill me." She mumbled before she turned back and trotted over to him.

"Thank you so much. I owe you my life now." Darien said as he tried to stand, only to fall back to his knees as he stepped onto a sharp rock. "Ow!" He cried out.

Serria snorted like a horse as she smiled skeptically down at him. "Humans have always been my weakness. I find them so pathedic, yet cute. And you, are beyond cute." She said giggling at the look on Darien's face. She then held out her hand towards him. "Come on. Take my hand."

Darien reached up with both hands and took her's. She helped him stand up and let him lean against her horse body. She even felt him shaking painfully and it made her frown sympathedically down at him. "Oh, you poor thing." She said softly before bending her front legs to kneel down. "Climb on. I'll take you to Hogwarts."

"Do you know the way?" Darien asked as he tried to climb on without pulling on her hair. He had a very hard time getting up on her back though. Serria reached around behind her, offering her hand to him, which he took and she helped him on. "Of course I know the way. I've lived in this Dark Forest for all my life. And I have watched the students of Hogwarts from a far. I find them so facinating. Though it's forbidden to mingle with humans. I'll probably get into a lot of trouble for helping you. Hopefully my father don't find out. He'll flip his tail." She said rolling her eyes.

"I know a centaur. His name is Firenze. He used to be a Professor at Hogwarts." Darien said as he held onto Serria as she tried to stand.

The centaur rolled her eyes. "Oh, him. I know who is. He's the black sheep of our herd but I still like him. Though it gets so annoying how he and everyone else just stare at the sky as if looking for some kind of sign. I can't stand it." She said before she waved at the invisible creature. "Come on, Jack. You can come with us."

Darien frowned as he looked at the spot where she waved to. "Thestral, huh? My mom told me about those. You can't see them unless you've seen death. And I'm guessing that you can see it."

Serria snorted as she looked over her shoulder at him. "And how did you guess that?"

The young student just smiled at her. "Sorry."

Serria shook her head as she trotted through the trees. "Don't apologize. It was my brother who I saw die. He was attacked by a werewolf years ago." She frowned when she felt Darien stiffen from above her. "What? What's wrong?"

Darien swallowed hard before shaking his head. "N-nothing. Do you think we can run? I have to get back to the castle as fast as I can. How far away is it?"

The centaur shook her head as she picked up her speed, almost trotting. "It's two miles away from here. It'll probably take an hour to get there. And don't you worry, none. The eclipse isn't until later noon. We still have four hours till then. That damn demon of yours won't be able to come after you until then." She told him.

"Okay." Darien winced again as his face started throbbing with pain. "Ow." He muttered.

Serria turned her head again, looking at him. "Wow. That looks really bad. We should stop and put some herbs on it." She told him.

"No. I don't have time. I can deal with it." Darien said nervously.

The centaur stopped anyway. She pulled up to a dark wooded tree covered in strange blue moss. She began pulling some of the moss off the tree and handed it to him. "Chew that moss and then put it in your cuts."

Darien pulled a disgusted look. "Ew! No way! That is so gross!"

Serria snorted as she started trotting again. "As always, humans are such wimps. It's not poisonous or anything. It's a healing herb that my people uses for cuts." She told him.

"I am not a wimp." Darien grumbled.

The centaur raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh yeah? If you're not a wimp then chew the moss and then put into your cuts. Trust me, it'll make it stop hurting and it will make it heal faster." She promised.

Darien gave her a reproachful look before looing at the blue moss. It smelled terrible and looked even worst. But then he closed his eyes tightly as he stuffed it into his mouth, ready to spit it out if it was really bad. To his surprise, it tasted like spearmint. "Hey! What is this? It tastes like mint." He said chewing the moss.

Serria smiled back at him. "It's called treetmint. Some of the centaurs joke about its name though. It's a healing herb that only centaurs use. No humans use it because they think its gross looking and all. But believe me. It works wonders." She then frowned as she picked up her pace. "So, why did the Umbra kidnap you?"

Darien winced as he pressed the chewed up moss into his cuts, which immediately seemed to numb it. At least it had stopped hurting. Then he began to tell her his story, leaving out the fact that he was a werewolf. He didn't even want to know what she would do or say if she knew that he was one. She listened without interupting once and that made him feel a little better. He didn't know if he could go on if she did interupt.

When he had finished, Serria made an angry snort. "That dumb Darkness Demon! He's been terrorizing centaurs for years! Why if my people wasn't such stargazing fools, we would help you fight this thing! I hate it so much!" She growled.

Darien only faintly smiled. "We've got something common." He then sighed tiredly. "I think he killed my dad last night." He said, his voice cracking a little. Serria just gave him a sympathedic look. "You can cry if you want. I won't laugh. I wouldn't blame you for crying." She told him. The young Gryffindor sniffed a few times, still trying to hold back his tears. "I know. But...I just..." And he broke down. His head gently touched Serria's left shoulder blade and she didn't complain. She just kept on going.

After a while, Darien finally calmed down and decided to ask Serria some questions while they were still going. "How old are you, anyway?" He asked. Serria gave him a look for that question but she was smiling. "You know, it's impolite to ask a girl about her age."

Darien pulled a face. "I'm just asking."

"Uh-huh. Sure you are. I know you have a crush on me. It's always love at first sight with me." Serria teased. The young 11 year old gagged and she laughed. "Okay, okay. In centaur years, I'm 14 years old, though we usually look about 16 at this age. In human years, I'm 50 years old."

Darien's eyes widened at the sound of that. "Holy cow! You're older than my mom!" He gasped.

Serria laughed as she turned a little and slapped his arm. "Oh thanks! That was not very nice!" She said scornfully, yet still laughing. Darien laughed with her before he caught sight of the castle's towers. "We're almost there! Thank god!" He said. Serria smirked at him. "What, you sick of me already?" She asked playfully.

"No. I'm just happy to be back on the grounds. Right here, we're safe from the Umbra." Darien said.

Serria then shook her head. "Sorry, buddy human. We're not on the Hogwarts grounds yet. The grounds ends beyond those treelines. This is the South side of the castle so the forest is the boundaries of Hogwarts." She told him.

And that's when things went wrong.

"DARIEN!!!!" Someone roared with fury. Darien jumped at the voice and he felt the centaur girl jump under him as well. They both turned a little to see something crashing through the trees. It was a very large stone golem. And it's eyes were glowing red. Darien gasped at the sight of it.

"Oh no! It's the Umbra!"

Serria stomped her foot against a log looking wild eyed at him. "Hold on! I'm going into overdrive!" She told him before bolting like a horse being spooked. Darien just barely had time to grab her waist before he was nearly thrown from her back when she started to run. He only wished that he wasn't wearing the shackles. He could have wrapped his arms around her waist to keep himself from flying from her back.

However, he didn't need to. The demon possessing the stone golem uprooted a small tree and threw it at after the two. Serria seemed to have sensed it coming because she immediately ducked low to avoid it. Darien got whipped in the head by a branch and he fell from Serria's back, hitting the ground hard. He gasped in pain for the millionth time that day before quickly scampering to his feet. He looked wide eyed up at the golem stomping towards him, snapping trees as it went.

"DARIEN! I HAVE HAD IT WITH YOU!! YOU'VE RUINED MY PLANS FOR THE LAST TIME!" The Umbra snarled, now raising a very large stone fist. He was going to crush the first year Gryffindor if it was the last thing he could do.

"Don't you dare touch him!" Serria snapped as she came running back. She ran behind the golem and kicked out both hind legs, hitting the stone golem's back.

The demon snarled with annoyance as he held his fist and turned around, swinging at her.

"No!" Darien yelled as he yanked out his wand and pointed at him. "Diffendo!"

The spell hit the stone golem's back, sending rock chips flying. It didn't seem to have made any damage to the demon possessed golem but it did catch its attention. The golem demon growled as he turned back and snarled down at Darien before swinging at him again. Again, Serria kicked her back legs, kicking the golem as hard as she could. The Umbra snarled with annoyance before swinging one arm at her, knocking her back and hard. "Yeeouch!" The centaur cried out as she hit a few trees.

"Serria!" Darien cried out as he tried to raise his wand again. "Diffendo!" More rock chips flew as the spell hit the demon, who turned his red eyes back onto him. Darien shrank back with fear, looking up at him.

"YOU LITTLE BRAT!" The demon roared raising his big stone fist.

Darien closed his eyes tightly, waiting to be crushed.

"UMBRA! DO NOT TOUCH THAT BOY!!" Someone roared with rage. "DELETRIUS!!"

Darien opened his eyes when he heard that voice but he had to cover his ears as the Umbra screamed in pain as its rocky body began to desinigrate. It turned and fled into the trees as fast as it could, the rocks just melting away before it vanished into the dark trees.

Darien quickly turned to see who had saved his life only to freeze. It was Godric Gryffindor. "Gryffindor!" He gasped.

The Hogwarts Founder just rushed over to him, bending down as if examining him for any wounds. "Darien Lupin, are you all right?"

Darien just slowly nodded, still feeling very queasy. Godric Gryffindor was standing right next to him and he had no idea how that happened. Then he remembered Serria. "Serria!" Darien cried out as he quickly got to his feet and hurried over to where the centaur had fallen. She was rubbing her four legs as if trying to get rid of a sore spot. "Serria! Are you okay?!" He asked looking her over with worry.

"Ouch. That's going to bruise." The centaur grumbled as she continued to look her horse body over. She then looked at Darien. "Yeah, I'll be fine. You know, human, you are sure dangerous to be around." She then grinned at him. "But you're still cute."

Darien pulled a face while Gryffindor chuckled. "It looks like you will be okay, young centaur." He said looking her over.

The centaur only glanced at him before she forced herself to stand. "Yeah, well thanks to you, whoever you are. That damn demon is sure going to get it now. No one hits me and gets away with it." She growled. Darien just laughed.

"Darien!"

He spun around when he heard her voice. His eyes widening to see his mother rushing towards him with several Aurors and Draco running after her. "Mom!" He cried out before running towards her, wincing a little as once again he stubbed his barefoot on a stick. He ended just limping towards her.

Hermione threw her arms around her son, holding him tightly against her. "Oh god, Darien! Are you all right?! What happened to you?" She cried, tears running down her face.

Darien just held his mother, yet it was hard because of his shackled hands. "I'm okay, mom. Just really sore."

Hermione pulled away from him looking him over. Her lips pursed tightly to see the shackles around his wrists. "That son of a bitch! I'm going to kill him!" She snarled as she took out her wand and waved it over the shackles. The irons was transfigured into vines and Darien ripped them apart to get free of them. Then he threw his arms around her again, hugging her tightly.

"Darien! Thank god you're okay." He heard Harry's voice.

He pulled away from his mother again to look at everyone around him. Everyone was smiling. But his eyes froze on the other three Founders, who were walking over towards them. "Rowena!" He said happily before looking at Hufflepuff, giving her a grin and then looked at Slytherin. "Slytherin!" The three only nodded their greetings.

"Darien! We were so worried about you." Rowena said softly as she walked over.

Slytherin looked him over, pulling a face. "You look horrible, boy. What the hell did Umbra do to you?" He growled.

Darien just laughed as he looked at him. "It doesn't matter anymore. I'm back and safe." He then frowned as he looked the Founder over. "Hey. You're not transparent anymore."

Everyone just smiled. "He's been reunited with his friends, Darien." Draco said clapping the boy on the shoulder. "He doesn't need to be a ghost anymore. Ain't that right, Slytherin?" He said looking over at the Founder, who nodded.

Darien's eyes grew very wide. "You guys can see him?!" He gasped.

Everyone just laughed as they looked at the Founder. "Yes, Darien. We can see all of them. The Houses of Hogwarts has been united. Hogwarts is now a safe place." Hermione said gently.

Darien then looked at Serria, who was coming out of the forest. "Hey, wimpy wizard. You better not forget about me. You still need to thank me for giving you a lift and kicking that demon in the butt so he wouldn't crush you." The centaur said playfully.

The young wizard just grinned up at her before walking away from his mother and joining his new friend's side. "Thanks, Serria. If it weren't for you, I'd be toast." He said holding out his hand to shake hers.

Serria just smirked down at him. "No kidding." She then reached over, grabbing his chin and kissed him right on the lips, making his eyes go very wide. She then turned away, tossing her long hair back. "Well, see you 'round, cutie. Maybe we'll hang out someday. If I'm not dead yet. I just know Bane's going to find out about this." She grumbled before scowling at a spot in the trees. "There you are! Thanks a lot, Jack, for leaving us behind! What did you do? Find something dead to eat?!" She growled at the invisible Thestral that only most of everyone but Darien could see. Everyone just smiled and shook their heads, while Harry, Ron and Draco were sniggering at the very stunned look on Darien's face.

"Wow, Dari. You're gone for one night and you come back with a girlfriend." Ron joked.

That snapped Darien out of his shocked look. "Shut up!" He said blushing hot red. Everyone laughed.

"Come on, you. We better get those injuries cleaned up." Hermione said, placing her arm around her son's shoulders and lead him towards the castle.

Darien paused to look up at the sky to see how close the moon and sun was. There were still a few hours left. Then he remembered about Professor Caligo. He pulled sharply away from his mother and looked at Harry.

"Harry! Professor Caligo is in the Chamber of Secrets and he's hurt really bad!" He told him.

Everyone frowned. "What?" The dark haired Auror asked.

Darien nodded. "I know it's a little hard to understand but it wasn't Professor Caligo who killed my dad last night! It was the Umbra! He shapeshifted into the Professor and hid the real one in Slytherin's statute in the Chamber of Secrets. He needs help right now." His voice had cracked again when he mentioned the death of his father.

Everyone just faintly smiled while Hermione wrapped her arm around his shoulders again. "It's okay, Darien. Dad's still alive. He'll be okay." She told him. Darien just looked up at her with wide eyes but allowed her to pull him towards the castle.

**Author's Note:  
There's still more coming so hold onto your hats. In the mean time, send me your reviews and let me know how I'm doing.**


	28. Chapter 27

**Author's notes: Hello, everyone. I am so, very, entirely sorry for making you wait for SOOOO long for the update. Seriously, I have not given up on this story as some of you have asked me if I have. To be honest, my computer had a major break down and it's taken this long to get the damn thing fixed. But good news is, I will be putting up the last chapters up to make up for the super long wait. **

**Anyway, this chapter and the next to will be the final battle with Umbra and the opening of the otherworld. So please, forgive me for taking so long on getting my story updated. Read and Review.**

**Chapter 27.**

Darien was sitting in the infirmary, letting Madam Pomfrey put ointment onto his wounds while staring towards his slumbering father. Remus was still asleep but he looked much better than he had the night before. And not long after Darien had been in the Infirmary, Harry and some of the Aurors brought a terrible looking Professor Caligo into the infirmary. He looked like he had received the same treatment as Darien had. He had a few cuts all over his face, his robes were torn and he was rubbing his head looking deeply pained.

"Just like you said, Darien. He was in the Chamber of Secrets." Harry revealed as he helped the Professor sit down on one of the medical beds.

Professor Caligo looked wearily over at Darien, frowning even more. He looked incredibly worried and very sorry. "Darien, did he...did that monster hurt you? I'm so sorry." He said sounding very tired.

Darien just shook his head as soon as the nurse was done with him. "It's okay, Professor. I know what happened to you. Umbra told me everything about what he did to you. I'm sorry about that." He said. The Professor shook his head. "It's not your fault, Darien. I let him possess me. I didn't know he kept doing it until it was too late. But I let him."

"Why did you do that, Professor?" Harry asked as he folded his arms.

Professor Caligo sighed as he ran his fingers through his dark hair. "I thought I could learn how to control him if he were in me. Ever since the first sighting of him, I've been very interested in it. Wanting to try and mix with him for power. Not to do bad deeds. I had heard that he was quite the Divination user himself. I was only a petty fortuneteller before I became a professor. I guess I just wanted to be better." He said shaking his head. "I was wrong. And I nearly killed a colleague." He placed his head into both hands.

"Humph." Snape said as he walked around the curtain. "Well it wasn't you, Caligo, so stop moping around." He said coolly.

Caligo just looked up before sighing again. "I'm terribly sorry for what I did to you, Severus. I wouldn't have done it if I could help it."

The Potions Professor just shook his head before stepping to the side to let Dumbledore through, who was smiling. "Well, it such a great pleasure that both of you are all right." He said looking from Darien to Caligo, who looked away. Darien just shrugged before gently touching the cuts in his cheek. Dumbledore nodded as he let his eyes settle on the cuts. "Darien, you will not know how happy I am to see you again. Even I had doubted that we would. It brings happiness to my heart to see that you are alive and you have not been seriously hurt."

"Thank you, Professor." Darien said before looking towards his father. "What about my dad? Is he going to be okay?"

Dumbledore nodded as he looked over at Remus. "Yes. He will be fine. His wounds are healing quite nicely. He will probably wake up soon. At least we hope he will. We may need him when the eclipse happens."

Darien frowned. "Professor, does anyone know where the gateway will open? We can't let those Dark Lords through. Umbra really wants them to come. I think the reason why is he plans to use the Negatus Mysterium on the Dark Lords. To steal their power to become even more stronger than they are."

"Darien, how would you know that?" Hermione asked touching his shoulder. "Did the Umbra say..."

Darien just shook his head. "No. He didn't say. I know for a fact that he wants it to be dark again, just like it was in the Dark Ages. He said he had more than half gargoyles willing to use their magic on the moon and sun. More than we have." He told them.

Dumbledore ran his fingers through his long beard before shaking his head. "That does present a problem. With quite a lot of gargoyles, they can align the moon and sun for a very long time." He then shook his head as he turned back around. "However, we already have our plan."

Darien just frowned. "What?" His eyes looked over at his mother, who was smiling.

"The plan that the Four Hogwarts Founders came up with, Darien. We're all going to stand together against the Umbra. Students, Professors, all of us." She told him.

Harry nodded with a smile. "We're not going to let the Umbra do anything to you, Darien. Or let those Dark Wizards out of the Otherworld. We will fight them as long as we have to. But the Umbra is not going to have his way." He promised. Darien only smiled at him.

"Darien!" Four voices rang out and everyone looked to see Rex, Lionel, Sam and Leoni rushing into the room. They were smiling brightly as they rushed through the doors and went over to where Darien was. Darien just smiled as he hopped off the medical bed, wincing a little as it hurt his sore foot. "Hey, guys!" He greeted his friends. Rex and Lionel immediately threw their arms around their friend and gave him a bear hug before Leoni and Sam joined them. Darien only winced as he felt his hand throbbing a little. He didn't say anything as he pulled away from them. "Dari, we were so worried about you! What happened?! Was it the Umbra?! What did he do to you?!" The little Gryffindor asked very quickly.

Everyone laughed while Darien shook his hands in the air. "Whoa, whoa, Rex! One at a time. I can't answer all those questions as fast as you can ask them." He told his friend. Rex only rubbed his head. "Sorry."

"Well, yeah, it was the Umbra. He shapeshifted into my dad and Professor Caligo just to get a hold of me." Darien explained. "And then he took me to some cave to do the Negatus Mysterium. But I escaped." He said very casually as if it were no big deal. His friends just grinned.

"Man, you get all the fun, Darien. That's so unfair!" Lionel said still grinning.

Darien rolled his eyes as he leaned against the bed again. "Hey, if you ever want to trade places with me, be a werewolf and get chased by some freaky demon, be my guest." He said dully. Lionel pulled a face then shook his head. "Ah, no thanks." Again everyone smiled or shook their heads.

"Darien."

Darien's head whipped around when he heard that voice. Even Hermione turned sharply around when she heard Remus. They both gasped before hurrying over to Remus's side. Everyone followed a little more slowly. "Dad!" Darien cried out as he looked down at Remus, who winced a little from pain but seemed to get over it quickly.  
"I just heard what you said. Are you all right?" Remus asked before his paused on the cut on his son's cheek. He gently reached up and touched it. "The Umbra did this." He said it more like a question.

Darien only nodded. "Yeah. He did that. But it's okay, dad. It doesn't hurt anymore thanks to Madam Pomfrey. Oh, and my new friend, Serria." He saw a few puzzled looks from his friends but didn't say anything just yet.

Remus dropped his hand before looking at Hermione, who smiled tearfully at him. She took his other hand, giving it a light squeeze. "Moony." She whispered. Remus smiled right back.

"Remus, how are you feeling?" Dumbledore asked as he joined the family.

Remus glanced at him before looking between his wife and son. "I'm feeling all right. I think I can get up some time soon." He then shook his head as he looked back at everyone. "What did I miss?" He asked. Everyone shook their heads. "Nothing much, Remus." Sirius answered. "The Umbra attacked you, kidnapped Darien, probably tortured him and he escaped. Oh, and the Four Hogwarts Founders have been reunited. Hogwarts is safe and sound from the Umbra." He said, lazily shrugging.

Remus stared dully at his old friend before slowly shaking his head. "I didn't miss much, huh?" He then sighed before gently taking Hermione's face. "You said the Hogwarts Founders have been reunited? What do you mean?"

No one spoke for a minute before they all spotted movement off to the side. They all looked to see the spoken four walking towards them. "Ah, Remus Lupin. Awake at last. It makes me happy to see that you're all right." Gryffindor said, smiling grandly.

Remus' eyes had grown very wide with shock and awe as he sat up sharply, ignoring the pain in his chest and the protests of the healer witch. "Oh bloody hell. Is that…." He couldn't find himself to finish as he looked over the Four Hogwarts Founders.

Hermione smiled as she took his hand. "Yes, Remus. These are the Four Founders of Hogwarts." She told him.

Dumbledore nodded as he held up a hand to each. "Allow us to introduce you to them. The brave founder of the Gryffindor House, Godric Gryffindor." And as he said the name, Gryffindor swept into a graceful bow at the waist then he stood up straight. "The kind founder of the Hufflepuff House." Dumbledore said motioning to Hufflepuff, who bowed her head in greeting. "The intelligent founder of the Ravenclaw house, Rowena Ravenclaw." Ravenclaw smiled sweetly as she curtsied, her head also bowing. Darien almost laughed at the reaction on his father's face. Like he and several other male wizards had done before, Remus looked on Rowena Raven with surprise, awed by her beauty. "And finally, the ambitious founder of the Slytherin House, Salazar Slytherin." Dumbledore finished. Slytherin just folded his arms over his chest and lifted his head higher.

Remus finally tore his eyes away from Ravenclaw and looked at Slytherin, his mouth slowly closing into a firm frown but then it curved as his face softened. "Salazar Slytherin," He said with a pause. "You've saved my son several times this year. I thank you with all of the gratitude of my heart. I don't know what I would do if something were to happen to my son." He told the grumpy spirit.

Slytherin just shook his head as he glanced over at Darien. "Do not thank me, Lupin. It should be us who should thank you." He said in a grumble. Remus frowned with the slightest confusion.

It was Gryffindor's turn to speak. "If not for you and this lovely woman," He motioned to Hermione, who blushed and looked away. "We, the Founders, would probably have been stuck in our previous forms, not seeing one another, not realizing who each other was, and not ever reuniting with our dear friend, Salazar. The Houses of Hogwarts would have crumbled within the Cave of the Foundation Stones and all would be lost of this amazing school."

Ravenclaw nodded as she again curtsied low. "We thank you and your family, and the current staff here at Hogwarts with the deepest reaches of our hearts." And this time, Hufflepuff joined her, as Gryffindor bowed low at the waist again. Slytherin hesitated for a moment but then he also bowed.

It surprised all of them to see that the Great Founders of Hogwarts were bowing to them, thanking them with the highest respects. Dumbledore smiled as he stood tall. "You are highly welcomed, Great Masters and Mistresses." He told them. Everyone else just smiled and nodded in agreement.

Suddenly Slytherin stood abruptly, looking sharply towards the window, Professor Caligo also looking at the window, with wide eyes. Everyone noticed and they looked at them with confusion and concern. "Salazar, what is it?" Gryffindor asked placing his hand onto his friend's shoulder. Even Remus and Darien could sense what they were. They could feel something changing, something was happening. "….the eclipse. It's starting soon. We need to get outside right now." The older werewolf said climbing off the medical bed. The Four Founders all looked around at everyone with serious looks. "He's right. We must go now before it is too late." Gryffindor said, already making his way towards the door.

Dumbledore looked at McGonagall. "Minerva, collect all of the Professors. I will make the announcement right away." He looked around at everyone. "Everyone who wishes to not participate in this battle may go to the Chamber of Secrets to hide. Some of the students, especially the years first, second and third may join you. They are not ready to fight a battle for their lives. Take them and go." He told them.

No one moved.

"With all due respect, Headmaster," Snape spoke up, limping forward. "I speak mostly for myself and maybe for everyone, we are not going to run away. Even if we ran away, there is no where to go without getting caught up in the horrors that awaits our Magical world, even for the muggle world." He told him and everyone. Slowly, one by one, the others nodded in agreement. Remus fixed his shirt, tucking it back in and pulling on his coat. "He's right. There's where we could go to escape the Umbra and the Dark Lords he's trying to bring back. We must fight." He took Hermione's hand, looking at her with worry. "Hermione, I want you to leave though. Someone has to look after James and Peter, just in case if something happens to….."

Hermione frowned at him sternly before shaking her head. "I'm not going anywhere, Remus. I'm staying to fight." She told him sternly.

Remus frowned at her before shaking his head. "No, you are not. You're going to leave Hogwarts and you are going to protect our sons." He said. Hermione now glared at him and Darien winced as he backed away. It was rare when his parents got into a fight but sometimes they did. The arguments that usually broke out between them were about small things but this was actually a serious thing.

"Remus, I am telling you, I'm staying here and fighting. I want to be here. The fight starts here, Remus. If we stop them now, then our sons will be safe….." Hermione was saying.

Remus shook his head as he glared right back at his wife. "And what if it doesn't, Hermione? What if we fail?! What then?!" he asked in a loud tone. Everyone around them was starting to back away or look around uneasily. Even Dumbledore seemed a little uneasy that they were listening in on a fight between a husband and his wife. "We could die in this fight, Hermione! And who will protect James and Peter? Who would protect Darien? If both of us fight and we die, our boys will not have anyone to take care of them. I'd rather die than let you or our children be in danger."

Hermione sighed as she gently took Remus' face into her hands, looking deeply into his eyes. "Remus," She spoke softly. "We must fight this together, stand together. We will not fail. We will defeat the Umbra demon and his gargoyle army as well as keep the Dark Lords from escaping." She told him. Remus shook his head as he touched her hand. "But….."

"Oh quit arguing!" Slytherin barked.

Both Hermione and Remus jumped and looked at him as did the others. Slytherin looked highly annoyed with how they were arguing. His eyes glared at both of the married couple, while his arms folded across his chest. "This is not the time for a squabble! The eclipse is going to happen any minute and we don't have time for this!" He pointed at Hermione, his eyes glaring at Remus. "Your lover is right! We must fight together! And we will win! This is where this war begins, and if we stop this battle, we win this war! All we have to do is destroy the Umbra!" He barked.

Remus and Hermione glanced at one another then back at the grumpy Founder of Hogwarts. "But, I don't my Swiftstar to be in danger and I don't want my boys to be alone…." The werewolf was saying.

Slytherin shook his head. "She's already in danger, Lupin Werewolf!" he growled at Remus. "With that monster, Umbra out there, she is in danger. As is your children! Everyone in the world, magical and muggle, is in danger! But we can stop it before it leaves the grounds of Hogwarts as long as we fight." He said in a loud voice. He turned and marched over to the window looking up at the sky. The moon was getting dangerously close to covering the sun now. "The Dark Ages will begin all over again if we don't keep those hellgates closed. It begins here, all." His eyes closed for a brief second then he spun around, his dark eyes looking right at Darien. "That boy has the power to keep those gates closed and that's what the Umbra doesn't want! That is why he has been trying to steal his magic, trying to kill him. He is a key to the past. And if Darien is not out on that field before that sun and moon aligns, the gates will open and hell will break loose. But he can not do it alone! We all must back him up! We must stand behind him as he closes the gates before the Dark Lords escapes." His eyes darkened. "And I will be there to stand beside him. Now what about you? You, your lover, and all of us must stand behind him to support him. All Four Houses has only been particularly reunited, starting with us." He looked over his three friends over before looking around at all of the wizards and witches. "But ALL Four houses must stand together."

No one spoke for a long time before Remus lifted his chin and nodded, his eyes growing very serious. "You're right. I am being foolish." He looked at Hermione, offering her a smile. "I'm sorry." He told her. Hermione only smiled at him before taking his hand.

Dumbledore nodded as he clapped his hands together. "Very well! Let's get outside and defend our home from the wickedness." He told everyone, who all nodded.

* * *

Once everyone was out on the field, there almost a thousand people out there. Adults and students, together. The word had spread quickly and everyone in the castle went outside to help. Even the ones who weren't ready to fight. They wanted to defend their home.  
However, even though every one in the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff houses had come out, the Slytherin House did not. Not one Slytherin student was outside. They must have gone to the Chamber of Secrets to hide. Salazar Slytherin was looking for any of his students in his House but his eyes slowly darkened with anger and disappointment.  
Darien almost felt sorry for him when none of the Slytherins came out. Only former students who were now full-grown adults were there. But none of the students of his generation. He saw Rowena Ravenclaw move over to Slytherin and gently place her hand on his shoulder. Slytherin tilted his head towards her, his eyes glancing at her before looking around again. Ravenclaw said something to him but it was so low that no one else really could hear. Not even Darien or Remus.

Slytherin seemed to agree with her because he turned and looked directly at Dumbledore. "Begin the announcement, Albus Dumbledore. The Slytherin House has fallen but true Slytherins shall fight." He said, his eyes looking towards the students with a strong, stern look.

Dumbledore nodded as he faced the students, moving closer so they could hear him better, even if he used the voice enhancing spell. "Ladies and Gentlemen of our brilliant school. As you have all heard the rumors going through the school, I am here to tell you that the rumors are true."

A few murmurs began but the students still stayed quiet to listen.

"Since the year began, all of us were unaware that there was a darkness demon on the school grounds, lurking in the darkness and watching us. What this demon want, is clearly what we all believe. It wants darkness upon the world, both magic and muggle. And to do that, it was trying to recruit all of the gargoyles." Dumbledore motioned to all of the gargoyles sitting on the walls, some looking very sad and some looked grumpy. But they were all in stone because the sun was not yet hidden behind the moon. "But it was unable to recruit our gargoyles, the guardians of Hogwarts. For they are loyal to their great leader, Golem, who indeed is the spirit of Godric Gryffindor."

More murmurs broke as all eyes turned onto the proud leader of the Gryffindor House but then slowly went over to the other three Founders.

Dumbledore shook his head as he lift his head. "The thing is, my friends, that the Umbra has declared an all out war on Hogwarts because we refuse to bend to his power, to bow down to the Dark Lords he is about to unleash upon the world. Yes it is true, that if the Umbra opens the gates that are about to open on these very grounds, Lord Voldemort will return as will some of the darkest wizards in history."  
There was a pause. "For one, one of the darkest that we have not encountered and hopefully we will never encounter him. His name, my friends, is Dark Lord Beliar De Diablo." Still there were murmuring from the students. "Students of Hogwarts, the great Professors, we must stand together and not allow those gates to open. For if we do, it will be the Dark Ages all over again. We must stand together, all four houses as one! Just like these great Founders of Hogwarts. They have been reunited, just as the Sorting Hat had sang about at the beginning of the year. If we do not fight for our freedom now, terrible things will happen. And we have the power to stop those gates from opening."

A few eyes glanced towards Darien, who lowered his head to keep from contacting eyes with others. He knew that the rumors of his powers had passed between the other students. Darien looked up again when he felt his father's hand touch his shoulder. Remus smiled gently at him, giving him a look that clearly read that everything was going to be okay. Even Hermione gave her son a smile, which he returned to both of them.

"Together, we fight as one." Dumbledore said as he whipped out his wand and turned to look up at the moon and sun. "As the Four Houses of Hogwarts."

There was a small pause before a small voice broke out and it was Paul's." But Professor Dumbledore," Paul paused as eyes turned to the Gryffindor. Paul was looking towards Salazar Slytherin and the so few Aurors that stood behind him, who once had been in the Slytherin House. "How can we stand against a Darkness Demon and a horde of Dark Lords? We are only kids. Some of us haven't been properly trained for this sort of thing. We're all going to die, right?" He asked nervously.

A few eyes fell onto the ground, most of every student looked afraid and they had every right to be. Even Darien was scared to death. His pale face mirrored every other students'. But no one spoke for a long time, knowing that Paul had a point.

But then, Draco Malfoy slowly stepped away from Salazar Slytherin and went over to bend down next to Paul. "Yeah, Paul. Some of us might die fighting for Hogwarts. In a war, people die. People are hurt in the most terrible ways." He glanced over at Darien then all around the students. "But it's better to go down fighting, than running away. Because sooner or later, there will be no where to run, no where to hide. The Dark Lords you might see coming through that Hellgate when it opens will terrify you. They will be the most horrible people you will ever see." He stood up and looked around at the students. "But you got to remember, you are among friends. You must protect one another from the most evil of magic. Use your knowledge that you have learned. You have learned the basics and even that will save you from the Dark Lords. Maybe for a while, but that's why there are so many Aurors here. We're all here to protect you, to help you defeat the Dark Lords." He paused as he looked up at the eclipse that was about to happen. "I know you're all young and very afraid, but so was I when I fought in my first war, defending Hogwarts. This place our home and we should fight for it. No matter the costs."

Another long silence before Darien found the courage to gently push Remus's hand off his shoulder and move forward to stand next to Draco, his head tilted upwards and his reddish black wand was out. The students murmured as they watched before Leoni stepped out from behind Rowena Ravenclaw and she joined their sides as did a Third year Hufflepuff girl, Darien recognized as Tara Green. She stood right next to Leoni, her head tilted up, looking extremely brave for a Hufflepuff.

And slowly one by one, students of all three houses moved forward to stand behind the four. The Four Founders smiled proudly as they watched as did the Professors.

"I still don't see how this is going to work. The Slytherins aren't……" Paul was saying as he moved forward.

"The Slytherins aren't going to back out from a fight." Someone said making all heads turn to see most of all of the Slytherins coming to join them. Lead by a Slytherin Darien remembered was called Daniel Holmes. The Slytherin House moved forward to stand with their Founder, who smiled almost proudly when he saw his students now joining them. "Sorry we're a little late, Professor Dumbledore. A couple of us didn't want us to come." Holmes shot Whitman a look, who stood between his two friends. Dumbledore, as did all of the Aurors and Professors, smiled as they looked up at the eclipse.

After a long moment, the two orbs in the sky touched finally and the eclipse began. The entire sky was starting to darken as the moon slowly moved over the sun. And as they moved together, the wind began to pick up. Darien felt a familiar twinge of pain his stomach, making him wince. He felt Remus's hand on his shoulder again. "I know it hurts, Darien. And it will hurt for a little while but you're just going to ignore it." Remus told him gently. Darien tried to stand up straight, ignoring the pain in his side.

It slowly grew darker as soon as the moon had half covered sun and the wind was blowing horribly now. Far from where the entire group was standing, evil red sparks began to fly up from the ground, creating some kind of hole in the air.

Darien could hear something though, something that no one else could. Angry voices were coming from the slowly developing doorway. He winced as he reached up and touched his head, a pain starting to rise in his mind. He could hear angry shouting and evil triumph cries. He knew the voices must have belonged to the Dark Lords. But there was one that made his skin crawl. One he heard that sounded familiar. It was like he had heard the voice from a dream.

"…_..Harry……Potter….." _And it sounded more like snake hisses.

The young Gryffindor breathed out an unsteady breath as he felt a shiver go down his back. He knew it must have been Voldemort. It had to be.  
Finally the moon covered the Sun and sat there and as it did, there was a sudden roar in the sky, making everyone jump and look around. The Gargoyles were coming to life!

"What?" Darien asked before looked at a surprised Godric Gryffindor. "But I thought the Gargoyles couldn't come to life during the eclipse."

Gryffindor, holding his wand tightly in his hand, shook his hair. "They don't. Something's happening. Something that didn't happen the last time the eclipse happened. There's evil behind this power."

From the side, a deep frown slowly appeared on Professor Caligo's face. He made a sound as if something was squeezing his heart now. "It's the Umbra." A few eyes looked to him. "He's using his power of the darkness. He's helping it become darker so that the Gargoyles can come here." His eyes widened. "And they are here!" Professor Caligo shouted as he looked around in the sky.

Everyone followed suit and saw large shapes flying through the air, coming towards Hogwarts. And leading those shapes was a large bat like creature. Darien felt his fear rise once again. He could already see the evil red eyes glaring towards him with such hate.  
The Umbra and his gargoyles flew over Hogwarts' heads and hovered over the slowly developing gate. Their leader landing in front of the gate and his big leathery wings spread out. A cruel smile appeared on his face as he looked over Hogwarts' defenders. "I see a small army out of children and grown wizards and witches. But I laugh." He spoke in his horrible dark voice. His eyes stopping on Darien, who drew back in fear and that made the Umbra demon smirk. "And I see the one I shall kill first."

Remus quickly put an arm around Darien in a protective way, as did Hermione, her eyes glaring at the demon with hate. Even Slytherin and Draco both moved closer to protect Darien, their eyes hard with dares for the demon to try.

But their actions only made the demon laugh horribly. "Don't worry, Darien Lupin. You're time shall come soon enough." He turned to look at the gate, a horrible smile curled on his ugly face. "The gates shall open, and my master shall be released from the prison that the wretched wizard, Merlin locked him up in! He shall have his revenge as well will all of the Dark Lords that have been unfairly treated!" He shouted into the sky. "And my world of Darkness will be created! No more shall dark demons and Gargoyles fear the light!"

From the group, Godric Gryffindor moved away from the group as he began to change, his magnificent wings spread out on his wings as a mane full of golden hair spread out around his face. He was once again Golem. "It's time!" He roared before taking to the air, and as he did, so did the other Gargoyles of Hogwarts. And it surprised everyone to see there was a lot more Gargoyles than they had expected. In the sky, there was what looked like more than a thousand Gargoyles. Hundreds on the side of Hogwarts and hundreds on the Umbra's sides.  
The sky was nearly so dark with only an evil red covering the once blue sky. The Hellgates was now done being created. From where the Hogwarts students and staff could see, they saw two large red demons trying hard to bar the gateway from the Dark Lords but they were slowly losing the battle to keeping them from leaving.

The Umbra only threw back his head and laughed as he watched. Then he slowly turned around pointed at the Hogwarts army. "Kill them all! But Darien Lupin and Salazar Slytherin is mine!" He snarled with delight. The Gargoyles who served the Umbra began to charge. Gryffindor's Gargoyles charged to meet them, missing some that flew down at the students.

"Now! Use what spells comes to your minds! Stop the Gargoyles from hurting you and your friends!" barked Slytherin as he raced forward throwing out his hands. He was using wandless magic!

Spells immediately erupted from the wands of the Aurors and Professors. The students quickly followed to throwing spells at the on coming Gargoyles. And the terrible war for Hogwarts began.

Darien waved his wand and tried to hit a Gargoyle who came very close to the students, but he missed. "Bloody hell!" He gasped as he ducked as it tried to grab for him. But Remus and Hermione's spells didn't miss the Gargoyle. Their spells hit it just fine. It sent the Gargoyle flying across the sky.

"Careful, Darien!" Remus called to him as he stood back to back with Hermione and Sirius.

Darien smiled and looked to his friends who were casting spell after spell at the Gargoyles. "Guys, lets do the same! Get back to back with me!" He called to them. Lionel nodded as he immediately did so. The others did the same and they made some kind of circle as they continued to throw spells after spells at the attacking Gargoyles.

The battle grew worst, from what Darien could see. He saw the Umbra now joining the fight, going to the Hellgates to attack the red demons. He slashed at their backs, making them roar in pain. Now the guardian demons had to worry about an attacking Darkness demon and dark wizards trying to escape.  
Darien knew that something must be done. He had to help the guardian demons. He paused to look around for someone to help. He saw the Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff standing side by side conjuring up interesting spells to fight off the gargoyles. He saw Slytherin was now a giant black snake striking at any Gargoyle that dared to come close to him.  
Harry, Ron and Draco had conjured up their brooms and were now taking their fights to the sky. And all Hogwarts Professors were locked in their own fights. There was no one that had seen what the Umbra was doing.

Taking a deep breath, Darien broke the circle without his friends even noticing and aimed his wand towards the gate. "I will not let you free those Dark Wizards, Umbra." He growled before violently waving his wand. "Stupify!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.  
His hot red spell flew across the field at a breakneck speed, surprising whirling around a few Gargoyles that almost got into the way. It was like the wand was controlling the spell, knowing exactly who Darien was trying to stun. And the stunning spell hit the Umbra hard in the back, sending him staggering.

With rage, the Umbra spun around to attack whoever had attacked him, his wings spread out wide. And his red eyes landed on Darien standing a hundred yards away from him. A cruel smile appeared on his face as soon as he saw the boy, who drew back. "Darien." The demon hissed before he bolted towards him.  
Darien drew back even more, backing away as the demon sped towards him. He knew he was in trouble. He rose his wand and threw another stun spell. But to his greater fear, the demon weaved right past it, missing him. The young Gryffindor backed away more still throwing spells after spells. But the Umbra managed to dodge them.

"Oh no….no, no." Darien said fearfully as the demon came dangerously closer.

Suddenly there was a flash of black and blue and Rowena was now standing in between the two. Her wand raised and her blue eyes blazing. She whipped her wand viciously and an electrfying blue spell flew at the Umbra, hitting him. The demon roared in rage and pain as he went crashing to the ground, stopping only ten feet away from the two.

"You monster," Rowena said coldly as she kept her wand trained on the demon, who growled as he slowly got up, giving her a hated look. "Do not touch Darien. I won't let you."

Darien was almost relieved to see Rowena by his side, but still afraid because of how close the demon was. He moved forward to be closer to her, who just quickly looked over her shoulder than back at the Umbra. "Rowena, be careful." The young Gryffindor told her.

The Umbra cracked a wicked smile as he stood up fully and folded his powerful wings on his back. He looked directly at Rowena Ravenclaw, right into her eyes. "Hello, Ravenclaw. It's so nice to see you again." He growled, not so pleasantly. "Though, you're standing in my way, just like you did with Salazar." He hissed. Rowena Ravenclaw did her best to keep her head up, looking brave but deep inside, she was terrified. "Stay away, Caligo. You have done enough to this boy as it is." She told him sternly. The Darkness demon slowly shook his head as he slowly moved, as if stalking the witch and her young student. "I haven't done anything yet." He growled before smirking at her. "Not like I did to you and Salazar. Remember your final night?" He then shapeshifted into someone else, surprisingly taking the shape of Salazar Slytherin. The image of Slytherin smiled in a loving way at Rowena, who gave a sharp breath to see him. _"Hello, Rowena. I'm back for you. I'm sorry for the way I spoke to you." _The wicked demon spoke in Slytherin's voice.

Darien swallowed hard as he clutched his wand tighter. He knew it wasn't Slytherin. "Rowena, it isn't him." He whispered. Rowena gently reached behind her and took his hand, giving it a light squeeze. "I know it's not, Darien. Just stay behind me and don't look into his eyes." She told him gently still keeping her wand on the image of Slytherin.

"_No, Darien. Look into my eyes. Let's see what happens." _The Demon said in a grumpy way just like how Slytherin spoke to him. Darien adverted his eyes towards the ground but was sorely tempted of looking to the Umbra's eyes to tell him to shove it. "So, Rowena, why don't you tell Darien how you died? How I tricked you into believing who I was." The Umbra said. Rowena Ravenclaw moved to keep facing the demon, pulling Darien with her. "Shut up, you. You may have tricked me into believing you were Salazar, but you will never trick me again. And I certainly won't let you hurt Darien." She said boldly. And that made Darien smile behind her.

But the Umbra wasn't amused as he shifted back into his true form, glaring at her. "If you don't stand aside right now, you will be sorry." He warned coldy.

Rowena shook her head as she lifted her head higher. "You can't hurt me. I'm already dead, a ghost." She told him. Darien then suddenly remembered that the Umbra had the power to hurt ghosts. His head jerked up and he tried to open his mouth to give her a warning, but it was a little late for that.

The Umbra just smirked before his eyes flashed purple as a dark light surrounded him. He smiled even more when Rowena Ravenclaw cried out in pain as his spell stabbed into her own mind. She dropped her wand and grabbed her head, releasing Darien.  
Darien gave her a look of alarm before quickly grabbing her shoulders. "Rowena!" He cried out. But then the Umbra grabbed his arm and knocked Rowena Ravenclaw over with a sweep of his claws. The beautiful witch couldn't retaliate as the demon continued his mind attacks. Darien tried to jerk away from the demon, glaring up at him. "Stop it! You're hurting her!" He yelled, now attempting to kick at the demon's legs.

"Oh, stop whining, Darien." The Umbra told him as he turned his red eyes onto him. "You have more things to worry about." He turned around, jerking Darien after him and dragged him towards the Hellgates. "SO, you want to try and close the gates, huh? Well, here's your chance." He picked the boy up and flew over to the gates with Darien struggling.

And as soon as he was out of range, Rowena shook her pain off and climbed back to her feet, looking after Darien with fear. "NO!" She cried out before looking over at Salazar Slytherin. "Salazar!" She screamed to him.  
Slytheirn, still in his snake-animagus form, turned his yellow eyes towards Rowena, who immediately pointed after the Umbra and Darien. The snake turned his head and looked after them before his yellow eyes narrowed and he hissed angrily. Slytherin quickly pursued after the demon.

The Umbra pulled Darien close the gates where the Dark Lords were still fighting against the red demon guardians. A few looked towards the demon and his prisoner and made demands that they be released. "My lords," The Umbra hissed, smirking coldly as he pushed Darien towards the gate who looked on with horror at all of the evil eyes on him. "Here is the boy that keeps you imprisoned! He is the one that can free you!"

A Dark Wizard pointed at Darien, his eyes gleaming with poisonous green light. "You boy!" He snarled at him. "Release me!"

"No, release me, boy!" Another Dark Lord yelled.

Darien shook his head as he tried to back away but the Umbra kept him into place. He wouldn't stop trying though. He had to get away from these evil wizards. "N-no! I won't!" He cried out. The Umbra snarled when the Dark Lords did before he grabbed Darien's hand and forced it to point at the gates. "You have no choice, Darien! Release them…..with your blood!" He then took one of his claws and stabbed it right into Darien's palm. Precious blood immediately began to pour from the gash in his hand. Darien cried out in pain as the demon squeezed his hand, letting his blood drip down onto the grass.

Suddenly there was a crack of thunder and lightning as the dark clouds began to roll in and the wind picked up. The Hellgates sparked hot red and slowly one by one the Dark Lords smiled evilly as they moved forward. Lord Voldemort the first to step out and breathed in deeply. "Free." He hissed with pleasure.

The Umbra grinned as he threw Darien to the ground before the Dark Lords, bowing low to them. "Welcome back, my masters, my friends."

The Dark Lords all stepped out of the gates, looking around their surroundings. A few eyes went to Darien, who looked up with horror, cradling his wounded hand. One Dark Lord pointed at him. "That boy has the power to free us from the Otherworld, but he can also send us back by using the Esuna Mithras! We must destroy him!" He roared. Darien cowered as he looked towards the darkness demon, who smirked at him as he stood up. "Yes, master. He can lock you back into the prison that you've just escaped. Allow me to kill the wretch." He told him.

Lord Voldemort lifted his head, his cold blue eyes on Darien as a cold smirk appeared on his face. "The son of that wretched girl, Hermione Lupin." He then nodded. "Yes, kill the boy." He hissed.

Darien quickly moved back as the Umbra began to come at him, a cold smile on his face. He shook his head as he did his best to cradle his hand and escape from the demon. But it was rather difficult moving away from him with one arm. The darkness demon just smiled at him as he reached down and grab Darien by the front of his shirt. "Thus, shall end the life of Darien Lupin." He rose his claws to slash the boy, who tightly closed his eyes waiting for the fated blow.

Suddenly there was a loud hissing sound and something bowled right into the Umbra and Darien, knocking them over. But then cool scales pressed against Darien's skin as he found himself in an embrace of a giant black snake. He recognized the snake as Salazar Slytherin's animagus form.

"Sssstay awake from him, Caligo!" The giant snake hissed at him, as he pulled Darien closer to it. It slithered back away from the outraged demon and the Dark Lords. "Ssstay with me, Darien." The wizard snake hissed at him. The Umbra stood up, his wings shot out as he slowly began approach the giant snake. "Stay out of my way, Salazar! That boy must die!" He growled at the snake. Slytherin hissed right back at him, his fangs bared, threatening to sink into the demon. "No, he must live! I will not let you take his life the way you took mine! This boy shall be all of your down fall!" he hissed at the Dark Lords.

Lord Voldemort tilted his head as he moved forward, his eyes narrowing. "Salazar Slytherin?" He asked and a few eyes turned onto him.

Slytherin looked at him, but kept Darien in his embrace, who couldn't help but hug the giant snake's body as he tried to hide behind the black scales. "Yesss. I am Sssalazar Sssslytherin! And you……Voldemort are NOT my heir! You may have my blood running through your veinssss! But you are not my heir! I don't breed evil wizardssss sssuch assss you!" He hissed at the pale wizard, who drew back a little. "My heir'ssss name was Tom Marvolo Riddle and he died the day he changed his name to Lord Voldemort!"

Voldemort made an angry hiss as he glared up at the snake. "I am so much better than what I used to be! I am Lord Voldemort, the greatest Dark Lord in history." And that made a lot of angry protests break out from the other Dark Lords.

Slytherin lowered his head till he was a little closer to Darien, his eyes glaring right into his so called heir's. "Darien, remember the spell I taught you to extract Draco Malfoy's soul? Use it." He hissed gently to him, too quietly that Darien almost couldn't hear him.

"But I thought……" Darien was saying.

The snake hissed impatiently. "Just yell it!" He snapped as he dropped something next to Darien from his mouth. Darien looked down at his wand before quickly snatching it up and pointing. "ESUNA MITHRAS!" He yelled as clearly as he could.

Suddenly brilliant blue light shot out of the reddish black wand, the blood red S now glowing brightly. Every Dark Lord cried out in alarm they saw the light. The Umbra roared as he quickly took flight to get away from the stinging white light. There was an outraged yell from the demon as he watched Darien's spell slam into many of the Dark Lords.

"Do it again, Darien!" Slytherin hissed loudly as he unraveled his body a little.

Darien nodded as he gripped his wand tighter in his hand and lashed it out like a whip. "ESUNA MEGA MITHRAS!" He yelled, remembering what Rowena once told him, about Slytherin's father defeating Beliar De Diablo.

The brilliant light grew brighter as balls of blue flew from Darien's wand, shooting at the Dark Lords. The Dark Wizards of the history all cried out as some of the balls of light slammed into them dragging them backward into the gates of Hell. Darien's wand was vibrating violently, making it hard to hold still, until a hand wrapped around his, helping him hold it steady. He quickly looked up to see Remus, glaring towards the Dark Lords. "I'm here, son! I won't let go until you do!" He yelled over the deafening winds. Darien smiled as he turned his multicolored eyes back onto the Dark Lords.

"One more time, boy! Yell it so loud now!" The snake hissed as he watched through wide and excited yellow eyes.

Darien nodded as he held his wand tightly. He saw Remus take out his own and point it. "ESUNA MEGA MITHRAS!" Both of them yelled but then they realized that it hadn't just been their voices that they heard. Darien didn't have to look over his shoulder to see who was helping him and Remus hold the Dark Lords back. He saw thousands of brilliant balls of light shot past him, Remus and Slytherin, slamming into the Dark Lords, pushing them back into the Gates where two angry red Demons were waiting to shove them back. The brilliant light blinded all of them, making the Dark Lords disappear in the light.

There was a red flash of light, as the gate was once again sealed by the red demons, with only outraged cries from the once again imprisoned Dark Lords.

"Hold it, Darien! Don't let go!" Darien heard Rowena yell over the deafening sound. Darien just nodded as he put his entire energy into holding onto the wand, keeping the light alive. And for a brief moment, he heard a voice that he hadn't heard for a while.

"_It's all right, Darien. You can let go now." _He heard George Weasley's spirit say. He turned his head to see the pearly white spirit fly past him, giving him a wave, followed by Charlie Weasley's spirit, who both began pushing the gates closed. With thousands of spirits together, they were forming some kind of barrier, some kind of door to the gates.

"_You can let go, Darien." _Darien turned his head to see Lily Potter's spirit swirl right by him, joining the barrier. James Potter's spirit grinned at him as he joined the barrier.

And taking their word for it, Darien let go, letting the light in his wand die down. He gasped as he slumped against Slytherin's scaly body, gasping from exhaustion. He felt Remus wrap an arm around him, to keep him from falling over, not that he needed to.

"Darien, are you all right?" Hermione asked now joining her son's side and touching his shoulder.

Darien slowly nodded as shivered from being so tired. That spell had taken so much energy from him. He could barely stand on his own. But it was thanks to Slytherin's snake body and his father that he didn't fall over. And that was probably why the Umbra demon chose now to attack him, yanking him into his subconscious.


	29. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28.**

Darien felt the familiar pain in his head whenever the Umbra attacked him with the mind walking ability. He gasped loudly as his body gave a jerk and he threw his head back, crying out lout. He heard his parents cry out in fear, knowing something was wrong.

"No!" He heard Professor Caligo shout as he tried to push past the students to get to Darien. "It's the Umbra! He's attacking Darien!!"

Remus shook his head as he tried to grab Darien and pull him out of Slytherin's hug. "No! Don't you touch my son, Umbra! Let him go!" He yelled as he tried Darien free. But there was a snarl within the air as deep purple light surrounded Darien, flashing brightly making Remus and Hermione both fly ten feet back away from him. It even made Slytherin hiss in pain as he was forced to turn back into his human form and was thrown back. The dark light stayed around Darien, almost as if holding him up. He was suspended in mid air, crying out in pain. His hands immediately thrown against his head as he fell to his knees.

And deep within his mind, he was thrown into unconsciousness, being pulled by the Umbra into the mind worlds.

Hermione was the first to her feet, looking at the darkness around Darien with fear. "No!" She screamed as she ran towards it. She would have reached it if Harry hadn't caught her. "Hermione, don't touch it! It might hurt you!" He told her, holding her close to her. Hermione shook her head as she watched Darien fall to the ground, still holding his head. She struggled to get away from him. "Darien! He needs me! I need to get to him!" She cried out.

Remus hurried forward and wrapped his arms around her, holding her to him. "Harry's right, Swift. The light might be harmless to Darien but it could seriously hurt you." He told her, tears in his eyes as he watched helplessly as his son was in terrible pain.

Godric Gryffindor landed on the ground and shifted into his human form, looking at Darien with a pained look. "The Umbra has wrapped Darien into a dark cocoon. There will be no way you can get to him without getting hurt. The Umbra has pulled him into the mind worlds. It's up to Darien to battle him and defeat him." He said. Hermione shook her head as she pressed her face into her hands. "My son is only a first year student!" She dropped them again, looking something fierce. "He needs my help! Slytherin!" She yelled as she turned her eyes onto the grumpy ghost climbing to his feet. "Take me to the mind worlds!"

"Hermione! You can't!" Remus gasped as he faced her.

Hermione shook her head as she pulled away from him, her chin lifted. "Remus, Darien needs me. He will die if he fights the Umbra by himself." She said, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Slytherin was quiet for a second before he walked right over to her and nodded. "Very well, Hermione Lupin. Let's go." He told her before a green light surrounded him as soon as he reached out and touched her shoulder. Immediately Hermione closed her eyes and was unconscious. She would have hit the ground if Remus hadn't caught her. "Hermione!" He yelled as he pulled her against him. But Hermione was already tumbling in the dark tunnels of unconsciousness, with Slytherin right next to her.

In the mind world, Darien found himself falling the same tunnel but soon landed hard against dried up grass. He gasped as air was knocked out from his lungs. He laid there for a second before quickly sitting up to find himself in a wasteland. If his nightmares were terrible, this was much, much worst. The land he was in was no doubt one of the Umbra's creations. The land was an empty field of yellow grass and skeleton trees. There were tombstones everywhere around him. It was a huge graveyard of some sort.

Darien quickly climbed to his feet, looking around with fear. He didn't know this place but he knew it had to be a nightmare. He didn't want to be here and he knew he better escape soon. So he tried very hard to concentrate on waking up again. But as soon as he tried, he felt a terrible sting across his body making him cry out in pain.

"Heh," he heard a cold laugh, making him jerk around. "You can't escape until I let you go, Darien. And I will never let you go, until you are dead."

Darien turned to see a tall and dark man standing on top of a mound of dirt. His hair fell long and messy around his pale face, his eyes red like the Umbra's. He wore all black and there was a wand in his hand, which was covered in sharp thorns. But the thorns didn't seem to cut into his skin at all. There was hatred in the man's blood red eyes as he glared coldly at the young student.

"Welcome, Darien, to my world." The man said before smirked coldly at him.

Darien drew back in fear as he stared at the man. This was no doubt the Umbra's human form. It had to be. He stepped back, almost tripping over something. He quickly looked down to see a skeleton still half covered with flesh. "Ugh!" The young Gryffindor cried out in fear and disgust.

Caligo Umbra smirked as he hopped down from the mound, slowly stalking his young enemy. "Yes, it is a little unpleasant. But I like having a few dead bodies lying around." He told Darien.

Darien shivered as he faced the man, his fist clenched tightly. "Um-Umbra, why did you bring me here?" he asked, his voice shaking as hard as he was. He flinched when the demon rose his wand. He couldn't help it.

"Why?" the man asked, coldly. "I brought you here to kill you, Darien. There were too many people interfering and I grew tired of it. You have ruined my plan once again!" He snapped, making his wand spark a little. Darien flinched again, slowly trying to back away. "You have ruined my world and now I will destroy your mind with mine!"

Darien shook his head as he imagined his wand into his hand, and it slowly appeared. "I won't die without a fight." He told the demon, remembering Draco's words before the battle had broken out.

"Hmm." Umbra muttered as he smiled before raising one hand above his head and standing in a dueling stance. "I was hoping you were going to say that, Darien. Now, let us fight." He told him before he lashed out his wand sending hot red sparks flying at him.

Before Darien even had the chance to raise his wand to defend himself, the spell slammed into his chest making him fly back against a tombstone. The air was knocked out of his lungs again and he tasted blood in his mouth. He slid to the ground in a heap, hearing Umbra laughing as he moved closer. He looked up to see him move closer, his mind wand raised.

"You're going to die, Darien, all alone." Umbra hissed before he rose his wand; a light shooting out and hitting Darien right in the chest. A burning sensation filled Darien's body, making him scream out in pain. His head was thrown back as he wriggled on the ground because of the pain. "Oh, yes. There is indeed going to be a little pain before you die." The man added.

Darien clenched his teeth before his eyes snapped open. He had to remember, the pain was inside his head. He shook his head and imagined the light shooting right back at Umbra. And as he imagined it, the light shot right back at its owner. Umbra quickly ducked under the light, with wide eyes. "I told you…." Darien breathed heavily. "I won't die without a fight."

"….." Umbra hummed before smirking. "Oh, so Salazar did teach you some tricks. I should have known that he would. He was so anxious to keeping you alive." He then shook his head. "No matter. You are still no match for me." He rose his wand again and whipped it out viciously. Darien quickly moved to the side as the hot red light flying from Umbra's wand nearly hit him. Behind him, a tombstone exploded. Darien's breath was caught in his throat as he moved again when the demonic man tried to use the same spell. Again and again tombstones exploded.

And then, he rose his want and gave it a violent jerk. "Expelliarmus!" Darien shouted.

His spell flew quickly across the sky and hit the Umbra, sending him staggering a little but he had enough control with his mind that he kept standing. The demon smirked at Darien as he looked at him coolly. "Is that the best you can do, Darien?"

Suddenly, Darien felt something grab his ankles and the hem of his robes. He looked down to see skeletons pushing themselves out of the ground, grabbing at him. With a terrified yelp, he tried to pull away, only to trip. More skeletal arms shot out of the ground and grabbed him, pinning him down. "No!" He gasped trying to pull away. "They're only illusions! They're only illusions! They're only illusions!!" He began telling himself but he was having too hard of believing it. They felt too real and he was starting to believe that they were.

"Hmm." The Umbra said as he moved closer, a cold smile on his handsome, yet dark face. "Give it up, Darien. You're only a kid. You're no match for me." He then held up a twig. Slowly, it grew longer and thicker until it took the form of a sword. The demon smirked even more as he rose it, placing the tip onto Darien's shoulder. Darien shook his head with fear in his eyes. He knew that it was only an illusion, but he couldn't seem to convince his body and mind that. "Goodbye, Darien Fenrir Lupin." Umbra said quietly and slowly, he began to push the blade into his shoulder. Darien felt the sting of the blade, entering his skin. He couldn't help but scream in pain.

"Get the fuck away from my son!"

And a blast of red sparks flew at the Umbra and Darien, only hitting the demon. It sent the demon flying several feet away, wrenching what little of the sword out of Darien, who collapsed onto the ground. The skeleton hands immediately vanished as if they had sensed danger or had been summoned away.

"Darien!"

He quickly looked up to see his mother rush to his side, placing her hand onto his shoulder. He felt so relieved that she was there, with him. He threw his arms around her, and she held him just as tightly as he was. But after a second, her eyes snapped open and she fiercely looked at the demon, which was climbing to his feet.

The Umbra growled almost too inhumanly as soon as he laid his eyes onto Hermione. He looked stunned to see her. "How in the blazes did you get past my mind?" He growled as he summoned his wand again.

Hermione narrowed her eyes dangerously at him as she stood up straight, her hand still in Darien's. But instead of answering, Slytherin materialized right next to her. His dark eyes glaring into the Umbra's. "I let her in. If there was one thing that I was better at than you, Umbra, it was forcing my way into your mind." He said darkly.

"Slytherin!" The Umbra hissed angrily as he glared at him with hate. "I should have known. So you taught the Mudblood too?"

Darien glanced up at his mother to see if that was true and by the look on her face, it was. He knew that Slytherin must have shown her a way to use the Mind walking ability. And it was probably Slytherin who was keeping her in the mind worlds. She had no abilities in Divination and she knew that. But there was one advantage to it.

"Get ready to be beaten by your own game, Caligo." Slytherin spoke, his hand reaching down and pulled Darien to his feet. "Hermione Granger Lupin has the most brilliant mind in her generation." He shook his head now pulling Darien back, who looked hesitant but then figured that the grumpy spirit knew what he was doing. "You are about to get beaten by a woman."

Hermione summoned up her wand and moved forward to face the Umbra, who was growling as he backed away. They both were glaring into each other's eyes, though the pair of blood red ones kept flickering over to Slytherin, almost asking him if this was a joke. And eventually, the Umbra had to ask. "You must be joking, Salazar. Sending a wretched, modern day, Mudblood witch in to fight me, a demon who has been alive for over a thousand years. I know more spells than she would ever learn. You are sending her to her death."

"If I die, Umbra," Hermione said coldly, her head dipped a little into her chin. "I'm taking you with me. I will not let you try to harm my son ever again." She told him as she rose her wand, her eyes still very cold as she watched the demon.

Darien felt like his world was shattering. He did not want his mother to fight this monster. He knew that she was highly intelligent when it came to magic, but the Umbra had been right. He had over a thousand years of knowledge of magic when she did not. He did not want her to fight the creature, only to die horribly. He could not watch his mother do that. So he immediately stepped forward to intervene. "No." He moaned in fear.

But Slytherin grabbed his arm and held him back. "Let her go, boy. She knows what she is doing." He told him, his eyes still watching the two now facing one another.

"But, Slytherin, my mother….." Darien said weakly. "I can't…..she'll die….I can't just stand here and watch her die by that monster!"

Slytherin didn't reply for a long time as he watched the determined look on Hermione's face and the hated one on the demon's before their dangerous duel began. He was quiet for a longer moment before he looked at Darien, who was watching with tears in his eyes. "Darien," He spoke softly and the boy looked up at him. "Your mother knows what she is doing. If there is thing that she knows the most, it's how much she loves you. And that is what Caligo Umbra does not know." The grumpy ghost's face softened when confusion flickered onto the young Gryffindor's face and he nodded slowly. "The demon does not remember what a mother's love is. He has been alive as a wicked and demented demon for accordingly one thousand, five hundred and ten years. He does not even remember his own mother. A mother's love for her child is more powerful than magic than any powerful wizard could ever hope to achieve. That is why Harry Potter survived when his mother sacrificed herself for him. My once heir, Tom Riddle did not understand that either because he did not remember his own mother." He shook his head. "And that was his downfall."

Darien stared up at him before he looked back to watch his mother fight the demon. He was still confused of what Slytherin had meant but it was starting to kick in. Just maybe, he hoped anyway, his mother could take the darkness demon.

"You will fail, you know!" The Umbra shouted as he lashed out his wand at Hermione, who quickly deflected the hex. "I will have your son's blood on my hands, and I will destroy him!" He snarled, his dark hair flying in all directions as he moved.

Hermione gritted her teeth as she continue throw powerful spells at the evil creature. She was not going to be goaded into a verbal fight with this evil spawn. She was going to stop him from hurting her son, maybe even kill him. But she was not going to let the Umbra demon hurt Darien. It would be over her dead body before he even came close to touching her son again. "Expelliarmus!" She shouted and the spell whirled at the Umbra, slamming into him.

The spell, however, only rocked him a little. He only laughed at her effort of trying to hurt him. "Do you obviously think that any spell you throw at me will hurt me, Mudblood! All of this is just an illusion! I know that so therefore it will never hurt me!" He laughed, as he continued to lash at her.

One of the spells he threw at her whizzed by her cheek, slicing it open. Hermione winced, but then forced it to the side. She knew this was getting her no where. She had to come up with an idea of how to outsmart the demon. She had to make him think that he was going to win but not to. She knew that she was going to need to let him hit her. And that's when it hit her. "This is real! It's not an illusion!" She shouted, sounding stunned.

And the Avada Kedava spell that the Umbra had lashed out at her hit her, knocking her off of her feet. Her body went flying across the way until it slammed into a tombstone, cracking it in half. And then she was still.

The Umbra looked almost stunned as Darien and Slytherin did that it had happened. His eyes had gone very wide as he stared at Hermione's still body, waiting for her to get up. But she was still as death. Her skin was pale and it looked lifeless while her eyes were wide with shock. Then the Umbra smirked triumphly. He had won.

"NO!" Darien screamed as tears sprung from his eyes. He couldn't believe it. His mother….the most intelligent witch of her age had been killed. And the Umbra had killed her. "Mum!" Darien cried be fore he started forward. Slytherin had caught him by his shirt, trying to hold him back but he ripped out of the spirit's grip and raced at the Umbra. Tears were streaming down his cheeks as he shook his head.

"_Darien, I swear. You'll be the death of me."_ He remembered his mother would tell her every time he did something too extreme. And she had been right. He had been the death of her, in his opinion. She died protecting him.

The Umbra looked at Darien rushing at him before smirking as he jerked around and lashed out a hand, catching the eleven year old by the throat. Darien gasped by he did all he could to wrench free and attack the man. The very action seemed to surprise the Umbra. Darien had actually yanked free from him. He was even more stunned when the boy's fist slammed into his face. And for even more shocking moment, he realized something. The words the woman had said to him sunk into his mind and realized it.

It was not an illusion.

There was a light glowing around Darien as he kept swinging his fists at the demon's head, slamming him backward. "YOU KILLED MY MUM! MY MUM IS DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!" Darien roared in rage, his eyes suddenly starting to glow an amber color. "I WILL KILL YOU, UMBRA! YOU WANT ME TO BE A WEREWOLF? FINE! I AM A WEREWOLF AND THE MOST POWERFUL ONE IN THE MAGIC WORLD!"

And Darien went through a transformation right before the Umbra's eyes. He howled like a wolf, his robes ripping as he changed. Long brown fur began to grow right out of his skin as fangs slowly slipped out from beneath his lips. Darien growled in rage and pain as he changed. A second later, he was a werewolf.

"Darien, don't be a fool!" The Umbra snapped but his eyes were actually wide with fear.

Darien growled even more as he glared at the demon before he snarled and lunged at him. His claws slashing out at the darkness demon, striking him across the face. Large gashes were ripped into the Umbra's cheek and blood flowed freely down his cheek. For once in his life, which he had spent most terrifying everyone, he now felt the fear. He was feeling the pain. The illusions were no longer illusions. Darien was ripping him apart!

And Slytherin watched gravely but stood away. He was not going to interfere. But his eyes flickered over to Hermione's fallen form and they widened with surprise. She was watching her son attack the demon. "Hermione….." The grumpy spirit whispered.

The Umbra was knocked off his feet onto the now growing green grass. He was very unaware that his mind world was starting to melt away, changing from its horrific scenery to the beautiful green fields. But instead of the sky being clear and blue, it was dark gray and stormy. Darien still had not noticed his mother sitting up and watching him. He just snarled at the darkness demon.

"Darien!" The Umbra gasped as he covered his head, which was dripping with blood. "Stop this!"

The young werewolf ignored him as he went for the demon's throat now but suddenly stopped when Slytherin yelled out to him. "Darien! Stop!" He turned his head a little but didn't look away from the Umbra.

"Darien, do not do that. The Umbra wants you to become a monster and you are doing it now. He has made you unleash the beast inside of you. You must control yourself!" Slytherin yelled to him. "If you do not, you will become the beast and you will not be able to control yourself again!"

The werewolf growled and made to attack the demon again but then a soft hand touched his hairy shoulder. He jerked around growling but stopped when he saw Hermione, looking at him. His wolfish eyes widened in surprise. "Darien, calm down. Slytherin is right. You need to control yourself now." Hermione told him softly. She reached down and gently caressed her transformed son's muzzle. "It's okay, Darien. I was only trying to catch him off guard. But I guess I did it to you too. I'm still here."

With a low whine, Darien's body shuddered before it shrunk and he was standing before her again, tears still in his eyes. He looked up at her for a moment before throwing his arms around her waist. Hermione wrapped her arms around him, hugging him close. "Mum." The young boy whimpered.

"You……!" The Umbra snarled as he climbed back to his feet. He heard what Hermione said and realized that she had indeed tricked him. She had actually made him think that the mind worlds were real. That the illusions had been real. He had believed that he killed her. "I shall destroy you!" And the Demon charged. Both Hermione and Darien jerked around and glared at the Umbra, still holding onto one another. They were going to face him together.

But Slytherin quickly stepped into the path and rose his blackish-red wand, fire nearly dancing in his eyes. "Do not ever touch Darien or his mother EVER again!" He snapped before whirling his wand above his head and jabbed it towards the charging demon. "Lumos Maxima! Let light shine in every part of this world and drive Caligo Umbra, the demonic wizard back into the world of reality!" He roared.

And there was a brilliant flash of white light, blinding Hermione, Darien and the Umbra. The dark, stormy sky flashed brightly and the sun suddenly appeared, lighting up every inch of the land of Darien's mind. Even the land itself starting glowing brilliantly. The Umbra screamed in rage and pain as he tried to over his eyes. He felt his very essence burning because of the light.

So there was only one thing he could do. Let go of the mind worlds.

In the outside world, everyone was watching helplessly as Darien's body was still hovering in midair. Hermione's body was being cradled by Remus. His eyes were full of fear and worry as he held her close to him. He had felt her jerk a few times while in unconsciousness and had almost felt her heart skip several beats, as if she was losing the battle. But then it started up again. He wanted to know what was happening in the mind worlds. But there was no way of finding out.

Suddenly there was a painful screech in the air, as a darkness began to form above everyone's heads.

The dark aura around Darien suddenly vanished and he fell into the grass, making everyone gasp in shock. Sirius and Rowena were quickly at his side as his eyes shot open and he gasped as if he had been holding his breath. He looked around, noting them before quickly looking over at his mother as her eyes slowly opened.

"Hermione!" Remus gasped as he looked down at her.

Hermione faintly smiled up at him before she reached up and cradled his cheek in her palm. "I'm okay. Don't be afraid." She told him softly before she looked over at Darien, who smiled. "Darien, you did very well in there."

Darien smiled back as he let Sirius help him sit up. He felt Rowena take his hand and he gave it a light squeeze to assure her that he was okay. "Thanks, mom. For coming after me and believing in me." He told his mother in a low voice.

Then the roars in pain caught their attention. All eyes turned up to look at the dark cloud as it began to form right before them. The sun was already starting to peep out from behind the moon. The gargoyles were quickly making their way back to the castle and resting on the walls, as well as enemy gargoyles heading towards the Dark Forest.

The Umbra was quickly appearing but the dark cloud started to retreat quickly after them. It was trying to get away.

"Oh no you don't." Slytherin growled as he materialized in the air and aimed his wand after him. He glanced over at Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw, as if giving them a silent command. All three seemed to read his mind because they all nodded, looking serious and quickly joined his sides. Their wands aiming after the escaping demon. "By our power, you shall not escape, Caligo Umbra!" Slytherin roared after the Umbra. Then all four shouted a word that no one could understand. It sounded like four different language. Like a snake hissing angrily, badger growling, a raven cawing loudly and a lion roaring with pride.

There was a brilliant flash of light as the dark cloud stopped in the air as a barrier of light surrounded it. There was a roar of pain within the cloud. "NO!" They heard the Umbra shout. And then something large and metallic dropped down from the cloud, which slowly blew away in the wind.

A large bronze statue of the Umbra demon.

"What's happened to him?" Darien asked as he let Sirius pull him to his feet. Everyone was slowly approaching the statue. Slytherin shook his head as he kept his wand trained on the Umbra, his eyes very hard. "He's changed into a gargoyle. A gargoyle becomes a statue during the day to protect himself from the light burning his skin. In this form we can't harm him. He's protected. But…." A sly smile curled on Slytherin's face before he looked at Gryffindor. "Godric, bind him."

Gryffindor smiled and nodded. "Very well, my friend." He rose his wand and waved it over the statue. "By the law and power of Merlin, we bind thee, Caligo Umbra. Shall you remain in the stone that binds your heart forever."

A light surrounded the statue and it became very shiny, as if it had been polished.

"Tis' done." Gryffindor said as he bent down and picked up the statue. He turned and faced Shacklebolt, looking directly at him. "This should be forever locked up, Kingsley Shacklebolt. Though the Umbra can never break out of this bronze prison, he can be assisted to escaping. Only a truly powerful wizard or witch can break the spell on this wretched demon. He is too powerful to destroy while in the gargoyle's protected skin, but he is trapped forever unless someone frees him. Keep him locked away." He told the Minister.

Shacklebolt nodded as he reached out and took the Umbra statue. "It shall be done, Master Gryffindor." He promised him.

Then all four Founders looked around at the crowds surrounding them, smiles on their faces. "Hogwarts is safe. The Four Houses are reunited." Gryffindor turned his eyes onto Darien who was hugging his parents. "And the Hellgates shall be locked for another twenty decades, till the next dark eclipse. The world, magic and muggle is safe. All because of you, Darien."

Darien looked up at the four founders, smiling. "I had help." He glanced around at his friends, including Slytherin. "I couldn't do it without my friends, and my parents." He said smiling at his friends then at Remus and Hermione, who smiled back. "And without, Rowena."

Rowena just smiled as she looked down at him. Then she stepped towards him, her hands gently resting on his shoulders. "And without you, Darien, the Four houses of Hogwarts would have not been reunited." She then bent down and kissed his forehead, making him blush as his friends snorted with laughter. Rowena smiled as she backed away and held out her hand towards Slytherin, who took it. "I would not have my Salazar back." She looked at him, her eyes very soft. And for once in front of everyone else, Slytherin looked lovingly at her before he pulled her close to him. "I would not have my Raven." And then he kissed her. Cheers and laughter immediately broke out around the kissing ghostly couple.

Hogwarts was safe once again.


	30. Epilogue

**Epilogue:**

A few days passed since the terrible war for the Freedom of Hogwarts. Everything was settled down and back to normal. The Four Hogwarts Founders were staying behind the walls of Hogwarts, wandering in their ghostly forms and greeting students.

And the last day of school came.

All of the students were in the Great Hall, wishing each other a happy summer break. Some were exchanging addresses and laughing about what they were going to do the next year. Even the Slytherins were opening up to the other students of the Houses. Now that they saw who their Founder truly was, and who he was in love with, they were willing to change their opinions.

Well, almost all of them were.

Darien was standing with his parents in the Great Hall, smiling at all the friends he had made over the year. He was happy to be going home, but sad that he would be leaving his second home. He couldn't wait till the new school year. He wondered what new adventures he was going to have in the next year. And he hoped that it would be interesting. He knew it would be. Especially with the Hogwarts Founders deciding that they would stay in the castle. Slytherin had already promised that in the next year, he was going to continue teaching Darien the art of Divination. He even had permission from the Lupins and Professor Dumbledore.

"Well, the first year has ended." Rex said as he faced Darien, Lionel, Leoni and Sam, all were smiling. "Would you guys write to me?"

All four of his friends smiled as they nodded. "Of course, Rex." Darien told him. "You're our best mate, and the face of our group. I'll write to you everyday, if you want."

Sam nodded as she gave Rex a hug, who blushed pink. "I'll write to you too, Rex. I guess I'll write to you and Lionel too, Darien. I'm definitely writing to Leoni." She said smiling at the Ravenclaw girl. Lionel just rolled his eyes as he folded his arms. "Fine, fine. You can write to me. But just don't kill….." He stopped when Sam gave him a threatening look and he cringed. "Um…sure I'll write to you too, Sam. You're pretty cool." He told her. Everyone smiled and shook their heads. Darien looked over when he noticed Draco, Harry and Ron walking towards them. He grinned at them before walking over, his eyes still on the white haired wizard. "Draco, so you're still here."

"So I suppose you will be moving out of our home then." Remus said holding out his hand to Draco.

Draco nodded as he took Remus' hand and shook it. "I'm afraid so. I think I'm able to take care of myself now. Plus someone needs to look after our House elves. They're probably running around wild in my family's manor, trying to figure out what to do." He looked at Darien, smiling gently. "Darien, I owe my very life to you. Without your help, I'd still be a soul-less man." He reached over and put his hand onto Darien's shoulder. "Thank you so much. If there ever comes a time that you need my help, give me a call or anything. I will help you with anything you need. I promise."

Darien nodded before he threw his arms around Draco, embracing him. "Anytime, Uncle Draco."

Everyone smiled as they watched Draco Malfoy embrace Darien back before he pulled away. His eyes flickered back up to Hermione, gave her a nod then he turned and walked away.

"Well, another year at Hogwarts has gone and passed." Harry said shaking his head. "Next year should be interesting, huh?"

Remus tilted his head, yet still smiled. "Harry, Ron, you are both still welcomed to come visit. Why don't you come to dinner with us on the Monday after next? Our family would love to have you." He said, putting his arm around Hermione. His eyes then flickered over to Darien's friends. "In fact, you're all welcomed to our home over the summer. Anytime you want to come visit, feel free. Our fireplace is always open to flooing."

"We'll have to see what happens, Remus." Harry told the older wizard.

Ron nodded as he tilted his head, letting his long red bangs fall over his blue eyes as he looks at Remus and Hermione. "Yeah. We'll have to see. This summer might be really busy. We're still trying to hunt down all of the remaining Death Eaters. And Taurine Whitman is still on the loose too. He's been causing trouble of course. But we should have him anytime soon."

Darien and his friends glanced at one another before they looked to see Ian Whitman and his goons walking by. But as Darien looked at him, Whitman looked back and he narrowed his eyes almost threateningly. "Ian Whitman." He muttered under his breath.

"Now that's someone I won't miss." Lionel said resting his arm on Darien's shoulder and leaned against him.

Rex also nodded with Sam and Leoni. They all watched the three climb into a coach and it rolled away. "His da is still on the loose." The little Gryffindor sighed, sounding just a little nervous. "And now that Ian knows that I'm here at Hogwarts, I wonder what would happen."

Darien looked at Rex with a little sympathy but then he ruffled the littler student's hair with a smile. "Ah, don't worry, Rex. We're all friends. We look out for one another. And you heard Uncle Ron. The Aurors should have Taurine Whitman anytime soon. I'm sure he'd never come to Hogwarts looking for trouble." He then looked off into the distance, with a frown. He wasn't sure about that though. Trouble always seemed to come to Hogwarts, welcomed or not. But he knew one thing for sure. Whatever would come to Hogwarts, he would face it with Gryffindor Pride, and with his friends. Together, they could conquer anything.

* * *

Far away from Hogwarts, in a very dark mansion, dark robed figures made their way into the house, all had hoods pulled over their faces and silver masks of Death Eaters. There were at least five of them and they were going to the mansion after receiving strange invitations from someone claimed to be a Dark Lord.

The Death Eater leading the small group led his companions into a dimly lit room, which actually was a large library. The house reminded all of the Death Eaters of a haunted house and the eerie feeling they were getting, they almost believed that it was a Haunted house. Inside the room, the only light was from a large fire built in a large fireplace. The flames were, suprisingly and shockingly, black as a raven's wing. They danced in the fireplace, hot as the fires of hell. And facing the fireplace, someone was sitting before the fire.

"I suppose you are the one that has summoned us here." Came a cold drawl of one of the Death Eaters. "Who are you and what do you want from us?"

The man in black robes did not move or speak but stared into the black flames. His dark eyes just staring at the dark light while his head tilted a little, as if he was going to look at the Death Eaters. "What I want from you," he spoke in a very dark and sinister voice. It almost made the Death Eaters flinch from how cold it was. "Is your assistance to full filling something I should have done a long time ago. Before I announce who I am, name yourselves."

The first Death Eater made an impatient sound before he reached up and took the mask off. He was a very handsome man, yet deathly pale and thin. His hair was blonde and falling around his face in waves. His eyes were an acid green though and he had white facial hairs, the beginning of a goatee. "Why should we tell you who we are?"

And before he even knew it, he was on the ground screaming in pain.

The man in the chair hadn't looked at him but merely took out his wand and cursed the man with the Cruciatius Curse.

"I am your new master, ladies and gentlemen. I am a Dark Lord, more powerful than you ever seen. And I know for a fact that you have once heard of me." The Dark Lord spoke in a cool tone. "For who hasn't." And then he stopped, putting his wand away before he stood up and turned towards the Dark Eaters, who were paralyzed with fear. They finally could see him.  
He was somewhat handsome man, with a sharp angled face and an angular nose. His head was surrounded by pitch black hair and fell over the blackest eyes they had ever seen. The whites of his eyes could barely be seen because of the black color of his pupils. However, he was disfigured by a long scar running over his left eye and trailed across his bottom lip. This man had been in a terrible fight, with who they didn't know. But it was clear that they did not want to anger this man. So they told him their names.

The man on the floor announced that his name was "Taurine Whitman." But he finally stood, deciding to bow down to this Dark Lord. "Then, my lord, who is it we now serve?" He asked sounding only a little bitter but not wanting to push his luck.

The Dark Lord smiled coolly as he nodded in satisfaction. He looked each over, as if seeing how valuable the Death Eaters would be. But then he nodded in more satisfaction as he lift his head higher. "I am the greatest Dark Lord in history, the warlock who has fought against the almighty Merlin, greatest sorcerer of history, and creator of the Dark Ages." He smirked coldy. "Beliar De Diablo. I have escaped from my Hell prison and I come here to wait for the freedom of my most valuable and trusted servant, Caligo Umbra."


End file.
